When Fjord, one of the world’s leading design and innovation consultancies, grew out of its Helsinki premises, it needed a new space that would reflect the Fjord brand and feel like home to its employees from around the world. Having worked with the Helsinki-based Studio Joanna Laajisto before, Fjord knew that they had found a designer who could translate Fjord brand characteristics into interior design principles.

“Elegant, unconventional and human – those were the starting points of our design process. This is an office primarily made for employees to feel at home, and the wow factor for outsiders comes from what the space feels like, not merely from its looks,” says designer Joanna Laajisto who designed Fjord’s minimal and warm studio in central Helsinki.

From Finland, naturally
The 1000 m2 studio was furnished with natural materials of high quality: oak floors with sound-absorbing underlay, sisal carpets, and loads of plants. Light flows through the studio’s delicate, metallic room dividers, and linen curtains give privacy when needed. Instead of building a traditional office, the aim was to create an approachable, homelike workspace. Therefore, the studio includes several different kitchen and lounge spaces suitable for collaboration, creative work and casual hang-outs. Privacy can be found in comfortable phone booths lined with Kvadrat’s acoustic Soft Cell panels.

“We wanted the space to feel approachable and friendly: like coming to someone’s home. Therefore, although we work with technology, we don’t want to be surrounded by it. In our office, technology is in the background, and it works – you don’t have to think about it,” says service design lead Stéphanie Del Rey from Fjord Helsinki.

For Fjord Helsinki, it was important that most materials and pieces of furniture were of Finnish origin – without being too explicit about it. Meeting rooms are furnished with Artek Rival chairs and living rooms’ large carpets are from Woodnotes, whereas Knoll’s Womb chairs were designed by Finnish designer Eero Saarinen. Living rooms’ large lamps are called PJ01, and they were designed by Joanna Laajisto and designer Pasi Kärkkäinen. The green kitchens blend in with the natural materials, and they were furnished with Ilmari Tapiovaara’s Domus chairs as well as oak tables and benches from Nikari.

An office for business and pleasure
“Our people are very proud of our new office space and they are constantly inviting people to come and see it,” says Del Rey. “When planning the space and its furniture, we wanted it to be very adaptive. Now we can use our space in various versatile ways: people even use it in their spare time for movie nights and casual hang-outs!”

“For me, the best feedback was having Fjord employees volunteered to come to the studio to help me with a photoshoot – on a Saturday afternoon, with their kids and dogs! We ordered pizza, drank some wine and everybody stayed longer then was needed. If people enjoy spending their free time at the office, we have truly succeeded in creating a homely work environment,” Laajisto continues.

Studio Joanna Laajisto