The Acorn Group, Bromley

The brief:

MPL Interiors and The Acorn Group have forged a successful partnership over a number of years and it was our past High Street projects for the property network that provided the starting point for its new headquarters. The business owners asked the MPL design team to incorporate the very best of its branches’ design schemes into its new central hub, fusing urban and industrial, Art Deco and loft, to replicate its distinctive corporate brand. With space for 150  staff, our brief also included creating a mix of open plan, semi-open plan, break out, private office and reception space, together with meeting rooms, booths and pods, using our hallmark floorplan layout techniques.

Our approach: 

We were handed a newly-finished, purpose-built blank canvas, with three of the four floors having two wings – approximately 240sqm to the left of the lift shaft and approximately 140sqm to the right. The ground floor was planned to feature a spacious welcome area, a training facility with cinema-style screen and three private meeting rooms. We worked from the top floor down, following the completion trail of the contractors, with a focus on tight scheduling.

Floorplans first

The sheer size and scale of floors one, two and three required each level to be treated as a self-contained office, each with its own unique layout. When leaving the lift, every floor has its own welcome signage, lobby and small reception area with soft seating. Each ‘wing’ is also served by its own open plan kitchen, and features a blend of dealer desks in open plan areas, sofas and occasional chairs in break out zones, private offices for up to two members of staff and larger meeting rooms. Our space planning also included ‘ghost’ desks to illustrate how The Acorn Group could accommodate future growth in employee numbers.

A warm welcome

MPL was tasked with creating an all-new façade and signage for the building’s exterior, which included large panels of opaque and clear glass with vinyl personalization to denote the different brands/departments within. Visitors are now greeted by a bespoke Corian™ desk, an Armourcoat™ wall with de-bossed corporate branding and statement pendant lighting. The reception is also where two of The Acorn Group’s reoccurring design elements are first seen.

A timber slat canopy over the desk and Crittall-style doors to the meeting rooms reflect what is seen in the estate agent’s High Street branches, and they set the blueprint for the upper three floors. Stand-out design elements on the ground floor include marble walls and table tops in the meeting rooms, backlit wall signage by the lift entry/exit points and plush banquette seating.

The soft touch

As in The Acorn Group’s branches, there is homage to the homely nature of its business, with a mix of eclectic soft furnishings and accessories. From rugs and ladder-style shelving units, to pouffes and a myriad of house plants (both real and faux, including a living moss wall), ‘harder’ desk areas are offset with more relaxed break out zones. Adding extra layers of luxury are tactile velvet fabrics, metallic finishes and statement lighting throughout.

The same….but different

Although the floorplan for floors two, three and four are roughly the same, MPL was asked to create a different theme in each. While the use of plants, burnished gold and copper accents, partitions in the Crittall style and timber slat paneling provide design consistency, the colour and accessory variants mark each floor apart.

The first floor, (left hand side) features earthy shades of green, gold and copper, while its right side is brought to life with shades of ocean blue. Both sides of the second floor adopt a more tropical theme, with botanical prints on walls, tiles and soft furnishings. The third floor is more ‘urban loft’ with Dreamwall’s exposed brick and timber panels, shades of slate grey, metro tiles, leather sofas and mid-20th century inspired chairs.

Additional elements

MPL was responsible for sourcing and installing almost every item of furniture, and provided power and data supplies for the numerous wall-mounted screens. Also within MPL’s remit was the installation of a special pod with acoustic soundproofing and network/data connections, new flooring throughout, and all redecoration and bespoke wall treatments.