S3 Advertising is moving offices as it looks to embrace a ‘blended working’ future.
The advertising agency was one of the first tenants in Central Square, taking a 6,000 sq ft space in No.1 Central Square, which they kitted out with a ball pit, life-sized lion sculptures, a multi-person hammock and an 18-hole golf course.
With a break clause in their lease the agency decided it was the right time to move. S3 is relocating to and a space more than half the size of its current offices.
While the ball pit and golf course will not be making the move there are plans involving ping pong tables and karaoke stage for the new home.
“With [the lease] due we took the opportunity to look at our space and ensure it was right for our staff,” said Mel Matthews, managing partner (HR & pperations).
“A survey revealed that while they were relishing the benefits of working from home; including saved time and money on commuting, more time with loved ones and the feeling of trust to produce work as and when it suited them. But they also hugely valued the benefits of a shared, creative office space, seeing it as a place to collaborate with the rest of the team, share ideas and bounce off each other – traits which are the lifeblood of S3’s high-energy, creative agency set-up.
“Therefore, S3 has decided to embrace the model of the future, by moving to a ‘blended working’ policy full-time; allowing its people to work from a mix of home and the office moving forward. Coming just as we rebranded, we have decided to instead invest in a creative space where staff will be able to come to collaborate with their colleagues and spend time together.”
The Warehouse is located within Wyndham Arcade, one of Cardiff’s historic arcades and was comprehensively refurbished in 2017 with S3taking 2,557 sq ft over two floors.
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Savills says the space retains many of the original features of the building and combines these with a high-quality contemporary space with high quality finishes. The advertising agency has taken an assignment of the existing lease at an annual rent of £51,140.
“Remaining in Cardiff city centre, we wanted a creative space where staff will be able to come and collaborate with their colleagues and spend time together; The Warehouse was a perfect fit,” said Ms Matthews.
“It’s been a team effort and thanks to recommendations from staff, original blueprints have been tweaked as we take on board suggestions around technology and design. Now undergoing a complete makeover, The Warehouse will completely reflect our bold ‘Biting Big’ personality, in the way that it looks and feels, as we continue proving you don’t need to go to the ‘big smoke’ – and pay London price tags – to get work that bites big.
“As bold as a statement this might be, we believe our new office is going to be the coolest in Cardiff – if not the whole of the 海角视频 – and we can’t wait to show the world what our people have helped design.”
S3 recently underwent rebrand and the new offices will be designed to reflects the new identity.
“We’ve designed a completely new, bold creative space inspired by S3’s new brand personality – Where the Little Bite Big,” said Ms Matthews.
“That means vibrant colours, patterns, our lion/cat emblem and biting big icons everywhere. The upstairs social space will be styled like an ‘indoor rooftop bar’ – with plenty of plants, string lights, neon lighting, coffee machines, ping pong tables, fully stocked bar fridges and a dedicated S3 karaoke stage – perfect for blowing off steam at the end of a big week.
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“Our design plans also feature a stand-up pitch room for new-era virtual advertising pitches, a specially-designed content production room to help us shoot sharp social content for clients like Clogau jewellery and gender-neutral makeup brand, Vulcan and Vixen, and a special soundproof studio for recording of creative radio ads and voiceovers.
“These bold features combine with a tonne of creative and collaborative agile working spaces ready for new-era blended working – with meeting booths, chill out areas, break-out spaces and plug-in hot desks allowing our team to do blended seamlessly and use The S3 Warehouse as a hub of team activity.”
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Ms Matthews added: “And of course we wouldn’t want our ball pit to go to waste, we’ve packed up all 18,000 balls and have donated them to two nurseries and playcentres across the city.”
Gary Carver, office agency director at Savills Cardiff, added: “Good quality refurbished city centre office space continues to be in demand with a number of companies seeking space of this size and quality in the city centre, particularly close to Central Station.”