ARCHITECTURAL FOCUS
THE OFFICE INSPIRED BY WOVEN FABRICS
DESIGN OF REGIONALLY INTEGRATED OFFICE
In designing the headquarters building for ZOZO , the company behind fashion e-commerce site “ ZOZOTOWN ,” the architect ’ s aim was to create a “ regionally integrated office ” that will grow with the city , based on a vision of the city itself as being an office where needs such as cafés , parks , daycares , gym facilities , and more are outsourced within the city , rather than being provided for in-house . That way , employees become ideal sources of feedback for the company ’ s core business in the course of building a relationship with the city and local residents . This approach also allowed for a compact office that consolidates functions on the ground floor , other than the working space and meeting rooms that require high confidentiality .
On the southwest side , facing a road with heavy traffic and a high heat load , the architect set the building back to provide green spaces and a plaza that contribute to the cityscape . On the side facing Gakuen-dori Avenue — a travel route for students from Chiba University ’ s main gate to a railway station — the architect established a column-free space and overhanging eaves of a floating roof that open towards the north and south sides , seeking integration with the avenue . It is said that fashion is born on the street these days , and this office is designed to help create habitual observation of the fashion and gestures of people on the street .
The ceiling height varies from 2.0 ~ 8.0m , gradationally yielding both an airport-like public space and the privacy of a residence . The skip floors and roofs create differing qualities of space including shifts in sight lines , comfortable distances from one another , and spatial lighting , allowing workers to freely choose their ideal space for conducting their work or activity .
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