Space that ‘Works Hard’
THE NEW HYPER-EFFICIENT
The impact of physical space no longer depends on sales per square foot. Rather, success can be measured by how efficient an environment is at supporting our chosen way of life.
Whether it be the retail experience connecting us to what we buy on a deeper level, workplace settings enabling us to structure our day on our terms, or urban solutions improving local living — space is having to work harder than ever, across the board.
Yesterday : Multi-functional.
Today : Agile.
Tomorrow: Malleable.
Yesterday’s notion of ‘multi-functional space-use’ is expanding into new resilient forms, with experiences and environments acting in hyper-efficient ways. Agility is the new mandatory, with designers and architects creating radical solutions to social, economical and environmental challenges. Rather than one space being kitted out to fulfil our every need, this is about pockets of space being able to transform quickly and with ease.
Across all industries, space is increasingly being used for every last slither of opportunity it can offer. This is leading to new models for intelligent space-use. Before long, we foresee that the notion of agility will expand into malleability as tech advances — making space more capable of reshaping based on new needs and behaviours (read more on malleable space-use).
Because we have to…
With cities bursting at the seams, our planet plundered of resources, and people feeling time-poor and mentally-stretched, there is a true need to be hyper-efficient in our attitude to space-use today.
> Physical space comes at sky-high costs: Especially in large metropoles, we’re seeing increasing anxiety around affordable housing and the future of our high streets.
Today’s urban planners and architects are dreaming up new models, and brands are benefitting from getting seriously involved in the shaping of our futures. MINI is an example of a brand making important waves in the building of our urban areas.
With the long-term research project MINI LIVING, the brand translates their core principle ‘creative use of space’ into a host of real-life installations and spaces. Keeping to the idea of miniature-sized space, the MINI solutions tackle pressing issues of urban living such as shortages of affordable housing, lack of public space and general quality of life.
> Beyond the expense of space, we’re also simply running out of it: Available footprints within our dense cities are increasingly limited. So configurations and functionalities need to be efficiently mapped-out.
This has brought the need to shift away from space being owned or on a full-term lease, towards space being borrowed — once again, more agile. We’re seeing this especially within workspaces. More and more companies — from startups to giant brands — are seeing the upsides to non-fixed space. WeWork has a new competitor in Knotel — a company that designs, builds and facilitates customised office space for growing brands. When reading Knotel’s manifesto, the exceeding importance of ‘agility’ is clear cut: “Meet your agile office. Your agile business deserves an agile space.”
> There is a need for physical space to always be ‘on’: To compete with digital lifestyles, and for pure economic necessity. Landlords are having to reinvent their offerings to make sure that no space is left unused, fulfilling a function and being efficient around the clock.
The start-up called Spacious has come up with a solution that makes efficient use of restaurants during the daytime hours they close. Spacious transforms dining rooms into well-lit and fully functional co-working spaces before they open for the evening. This runs on a membership-based model, which gives individuals access to any location around the city: “Spacious moves with you as you move around the city…. Find a pocket of peace and productivity, wherever you are.”
Because we want to…
With the total population rising by an estimated 83 million people every year, we are made increasingly aware of our effect on the planet. There are increasing discourses around a ‘moral uprising’, as we’re learning the value of what we have, we understand the need to use it better, whilst having less negative impact. There is a growing sense that there must be a better way — embedding circular economy and sustainable thinking into space-use.
> Consumers are less willing and less able to buy into fixed ownership-based solutions: Having a permanent home, and kitting this out with designer objects, are rapidly loosing favour. Value is measured not by amounts of things or levels of luxury, but by meaning being layered onto our lives. It’s about being more frugal and conscious about putting more stuff out into the world. Some call this the ‘sharing economy’, where space is no longer something we own, but something we borrow. And membership goes beyond buying access to a health club or co-working space. This is about buying into a set of values, a lifestyle and a community.
A prediction made by the World Economic Forum is that by 2030 “all products will have become services”, with individuals renting what they need on-demand. In response, brands are presenting more agile models, appealing to temporary use. New furniture-and-art-rental service Harth offers a flexible way to furnish interiors.
Partnering with design labels, makers and galleries, Harth lends pieces to its members — without entering long-term commitment and making them free of long lead times.
The brand’s mission stating: “Harth brings true flexibility to interiors, by making it possible to change any space in whatever way we like, for as long as we like, quickly, easily, and with complete peace of mind.”
> Consumers are put off by retail environments that lack any real substance: Advances in technology are making individuals more aware (and more demanding). Consumers do not want to be passive users — they want the ease and efficiency of online commerce, combined with layers of personalisation and human interaction. According to a 2018 PwC consumer survey, the past 3 years have seen a rise in weekly physical store shopping. This could indicate a desire towards more tactile, sensory and social experiences (more on shape-shifts in retail in an upcoming piece). There is no doubt that retail is working hard to seduce modern-day consumers who want it all on their terms, right now. Agility for brands in this arena equals providing fast, on-demand service with tailoring options.
Hyper efficiency and customisation are key tenets in Adidas’ new Speedfactory facilities in Ansbach, Germany, and Altanta, USA.
Here, the production process is localised and condensed to a few days — using on-site robotic cutting, 3D knitting and additive manufacturing. Enabling customers to instantly tailor shoes to individual needs and wants, Adidas states — “This allows us to make product for the consumer, with the consumer, where the consumer lives in real time…”
Also AE studio — American Eagle’s recent concept store in NYC — puts strong emphasis on creating substance through customisation. An in-store Maker’s shop allows visitors tailor items to suit personal tastes. The store’s on-trend, stripped back WIP aesthetic (more on this in Imperfect) also hints at an open invitation for individuals to create their own stories and craft personalised items. Targeting a primarily younger audience, this experiential retail setting blends in hybrid offerings such as a free laundrette and study-friendly studio (read more on space is blending).
Intelligent Space
Perhaps to feel more autonomous, we are asking for the gadgets and products that surround us, and the brands we associate with, to support our lives without even the slightest bit of force or control. Digital is most successful when it seamlessly and swiftly reacts to our needs. And we are putting demands on our designed, built surroundings to do the same. Long-term thinking means flexibility over rigidity — leading to space-use solutions that respond in intuitive ways.
Physical space is already becoming more intelligent. Humans are finding ways for our surroundings to pay close attention to our moods, behaviours and physiology. We are seeing the benefits of this across all sectors, with designers teaming up with scientists for evidence-based approaches to the future of our products and spaces.
> Retail is turning to sensory marketing: applying the science of the senses to the shaping of space-use, making brand experiences more positive and accommodating to all. Retailers are offering calmer and friendlier shopping days, such as UK supermarket chain Morrisons hosting a weekly Quieter Hour, a concept created from research by the National Autistic Society.
> Hospitality is partnering with research centres for health & wellbeing: using scientific insights to make hotel stays and travel experiences more restorative, and more memorable. Ensuring we leave feeling better.
Qantas are working with the University of Sydney’s Charles Perkins Centre on a mission to transform long haul travel.
> Workplace is leaning on neuroscience: to better understand the benefits of a well-designed environment. Investigating how elements of a building affect performance and wellbeing, and how this knowledge can support us in our ever-evolving ways of working.
Neuro-architecture studies how the brain reacts to the spaces we live and work in. A field that brings together scientists and psychologists with architects, designers and engineers — asking questions like: how can spaces stimulate concentration and productivity? And improve community culture?
> Experiential branding has shifted ‘beyond’ the WOW factor: realising that if a live experience doesn’t move us on a deeper level, then we forget about it. It doesn’t last. We have a visual-first generation that is able to scan information and surroundings faster and in more detail than ever. To make a lasting impact, brands are having to fulfil desires for Instagram-worthy backdrops, while creating new experiences that pay close attention to individual needs and behaviours. In an article about how our surroundings are reshaping to look good on social media, the architecture and design critic Alexander Lange is quoted: “Designing for Instagram seems like a snake eating its own tail. Everywhere looks like everywhere else and the eye grows tired of bananas or concrete tiles or mirror rooms.”
