An award winning advertising agency in Cardiff has unveiled the UK’s coolest new offices to compete with some of the world’s leading companies – complete with a ball pit, life-sized lion sculptures and an 18 hole golf course.
S3 Advertising’s enviable 27-strong team of employees has access to eye-catching and unusual communal areas, state of the art client facing zones and a range of recreational facilities intended to stimulate creativity, encourage team building and reduce stress.
The colourful and uplifting design of the advertising agency interior includes a games area with pool and football tables, kitchen bar area, lion island in a sea of 18,000 balls, huge hammock, relaxation seats, living trees, multi-coloured paths and dazzling neon signs.
Walls have been decorated with comic wallpaper, inspirational text and branding which reflect the S3 history and culture, contrasting with the blonde wood accents of the furniture, plants and trees, offset against the metallic trim of the bar, floor and industrial style lighting. Floor to ceiling windows allow as much light as possible into the rooms, whilst also showcasing amazing panoramic views across the city.
A 32sq metre stadium style presentation area, which can be screened off for client privacy, takes centre stage at the heart of the open plan offices which accommodate 56 static desks, 3 hot desks, 3 offices, 2 meeting rooms and a dedicated video production room.
The free-flowing and open plan environment includes plenty of breakout spaces for staff to tuck themselves away for meetings or contemplation without having to leave the communal area, encouraging collaboration across the team.
In addition to benefiting from a personal wellbeing plan and training opportunities, S3’s staff are given time off work to carry out charity and community projects and have the opportunity to win trips to Europe and the Maldives. They are also encouraged to take part in charity challenges together to develop team building skills, whilst raising funds for good causes.
S3 has followed in the footsteps of the world’s leading companies including Google, Facebook, Airbnb, Hootsuite, Mind Candy, Expedia and Skype who recognise that providing an inspirational office space can increase creativity and productivity as a result.
‘Steak of the Art’ interior designer Patrick Abrams (PAC Architecture) was recruited to produce the plans for the offices whilst Paramount Interiors were commissioned to install the fixtures and fittings which bring the designs to life.
Matt Jones, CEO of S3 Advertising, said, “We’ve experienced significant acceleration in growth over the last three years and have seen our staff numbers quadruple in size as a result. Moving to offices four times bigger than our previous premises gave us the ideal opportunity to create an inspirational environment and an aspirational place to work.
“It was important for us to develop an office environment which promotes a sense of team cohesion by increasing opportunities for interaction, creative idea sharing and open communication. This benefits individuals, the wider team and the business overall. We’ve provided leisure areas for people to take a physical and mental break where they can enjoy refreshments, play a game or just have a conversation with colleagues, as this improves wellbeing and concentration.
“We work in a highly creative industry and wanted our offices to reflect the talent and skills of our team. As a result of our investment we can now offer a more positive working environment which will help us to attract the highest calibre of candidates, increase job opportunities, boost our service offering and enable us to progress with expansion plans and long term business goals.”