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SGH was retained by this forward-thinking Client, Puma, for interior design services of their space in Toronto, Ontario. Taking the inspiration from Puma’s “Forever Faster” brand strategy, the goal for the space was to support the need to be fast in reacting to trends and executing innovative ideas.

This brand message is communicated by every architectural product selection – from finish to branding. The look and feel of the space speaks to the raw, gritty and dynamic culture of the Puma brand.

The showroom’s location close to Pearson International airport supports ease and speed of moving product and people. It’s edgy colour, lighting and detailing express the brand’s confident personality and tempo: a bold red stripe on the floor; linear fixtures representing the ribs of the iconic cat.

The symmetrical arrangement of the lighting with the carpet has a kinetic, energized feeling. The bold stripe connects the elements of the space emphasizes the linear planning. The path to the centrally located glass encased showroom is clad with large changeable graphics that express the Puma’s attitude and brand values.

This timeless space is contributing to the Canadian success of an iconic brand, inspiring sales, and customer loyalty.

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We are all experiencing change and the impact it is having on our office spaces. For some, a wait and see approach with minor adjustments to increase collaboration and focus is realistic. Others are embracing the hybrid work model but need to adjust existing space to support an increase in connecting remotely. SGH continues to work with valued clients who have made transformational shifts to agile, activity-based workplaces and our envision toolkit was highly effective in moving them through this process.

Regardless of where you sit on this sliding scale, the desire to provide an inspiring workplace that supports your people is still as relevant as it ever was, perhaps even more. SGH have been transforming workplaces for 35 years and design strategy has always been the key to our approach and success.

Pagerduty

Design Strategy prepares your space for ongoing change.

TIER ONE – Planning for NOW:
SGH meet with you to review expectations, see your existing space, and uncover key objectives and drivers. Through space use analysis, test fits and thought starters we present clear visual solutions that champion your internal decision-making process.

TIER TWO – Planning for TRANSITION
In continuum to Tier One, Tier Two kicks off with an interactive workshop that ushers in critical information. This important session encourages open conversation with leadership regarding workplace must haves, culture + brand, long view goals, and building a defined set of guiding principles.

TIER THREE – Planning for the FUTURE
Transformational change is more successful when you engage those it will most impact. Tier Three includes reaching out to stakeholders, managers and employees through surveys, questionnaires, and interactive workshops. The results create a strategic framework and communication strategy that will drive your project forward in a positive inclusive direction.

KPM Industries

Envision Strategy is upfront planning to ensure the very best outcome. As design thinkers, we provide an engaging experience to get to the core of what you need your workplace do specifically for you. Leaders know that the best results are achieved when you envision where you need to go, determine the best way to get there and understand how the cost behind it. It tests options so that you can select the best choice and move forward with a thorough understanding and confidence in your decision.

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Our three studios across Canada, complement of over 30 talented designers, are ideally sized to respond to projects of all scales and complexities. We are well versed and trained in international trends and incorporate that knowledge into our design development. Our commercial and office interior design studio is based on innovative thinking, collaborative approaches supported by an open environment allowing creativity to reach its highest levels.

With each sector comes a new client with unique design feature requirements. Over our 35 years of experience, we have fine-tuned our expertise in each business sector. After carefully listening to our clients, we create a solution-based approach based on our Envision Strategy. A hallmark of SGH’s work is the level of personal attention and involvement of the leadership team in all projects. Our clients value the agility of the SGH team and our ability to respond to schedule and budget challenges with fresh and innovative solutions.

At SGH our methodology is simple, and we break it down into three keywords. Culture. Care. Create.

Culture. We are here to understand who you are and how your workplace functions best.

Care.  At SGH Design Partners we listen to your needs and help guide you towards a design solution custom to you.

Create. SGH is proud to design transformative environments for our clients across Canada and we are grateful to work alongside our partners in this industry to continue building the workplaces of the future.

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We are so proud to continue providing exceptional quality design services for our clients and how far we have come over the years as a team. SGH has grown tremendously since we started 35 years ago; to celebrate, we are looking back at some of SGH’s milestones and transitional events that took place over the years.

We are honored to have spent the past 35 years building a community of wonderful clients and friends and we are looking forward to a bright future ahead.

1987: SGB was Founded

After working together for many years, Carol Smith, Peter Grimley, David Berg and Don Harris came together and became the founding Partners of what was at the time called Smith Grimley Berg, a corporate interior design firm in downtown Toronto. The original office, located at 411 Richmond Street, was home to the original SGB team who worked on SGB’s first big clients like Canada Life, the Sky Dome (now known as The Rogers Center in Toronto) and William Mercer.

These were the days where contracts were typed out on typewriters and everything was completely hand drawn. Shortly thereafter, SGB decided to invest in a software called AutoCAD which revolutionized the way designers could work. A huge learning curve, from all hand drawn to using computers and technology, edits could be made in minutes not hours, this new software transformed design as we knew it.

1996: Monika Joined SGB

In 1996 a new team member joined the SGB team, her name was Monika Sarkisian. She was an intermediate designer who had graduated from Ontario College of Art and Design a few years prior. Monika, a highly creative team member, joined SGB ambitious and excited for what the firm had to offer.

2000: SGB became SGH

 After much deliberation, it was clear it was time for a rebrand of SGB, after a few years in business, SGB had solidified its place in the design community and was confident in who they were as a brand. It was time for a shift and Smith Grimley Harris Design Partners was born. Moving from a silent partner, Don Harris became an acting Partner with the retirement of David Berg. This new name came with a new fresh logo and new branding for SGH.

After much deliberation, it was clear it was time for a rebrand at SGB. After a few years in business, SGB had solidified its place in the design community and was confident in who they were as a brand.

2001: The September 11 Attacks

The 9/11 attacks changed the lives of many forever. This devastating tragedy triggered a change in many sectors, including a large impact for the design and architectural community. There was a need to increase security measures to be integrated into buildings, new building code regulations were set in place and a focus on careful selection of building materials were implemented. A greater focus on technology came into play, which increased audio visual and communications technology.

2005: SGH moves to 366 Adelaide

After nearly 10 years at 411 Richmond, SGH had outgrown the space and needed a larger footprint to call home. Through careful consideration, SGH made the move down the road to 366 Adelaide Street West. This larger space allowed for SGH to continue to grow and expand as the years went on and is where we are still located today.

2008: Financial Crisis

In 2008 the Financial Crisis of (2007-2009) also known as the Global Financial Crisis commenced and was the worst recession seen since the great depression. Millions lost their jobs, lost their homes, and businesses went bankrupt. It was a challenging time for many, and SGH Design Partners worked to continue to stay strong through this time by helping clients to reduce their space and supporting those who required real estate densification.

2009: Monika became Partner at SGH

After working with SGH Design Partners for 13 years, Monika Sarkisian became an official Partner at SGH in 2009! During these 13 years, design had shifted quite a bit, a new focus on health and wellness had come into play. LEED and WELL AP certifications become to increase in popularity and workplaces were shifting to a more open and collaborative workplace.

Perimeter offices were being moved internally so more staff had access to natural light, office plans were implementing more shared and communal spaces like lounges and cafes for the staff to enjoy, and office culture and branding became important key features in the design of new spaces.

2013: John Joined SGH as Partner

John Tanfield started his career in 1992 with an architectural technologist diploma and continued his education by completing his Master’s in Architecture. Before SGH, John worked with Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) as a Senior Vice President of Project Development Services and is now proudly one of SGH’s two partners.

2014: SGH Opened the Halifax Office

As SGH continued to grow the Partners felt it was time to expand our national presence and opened a new office in Halifax, Nova Scotia. After building connections and working with teams from across the country, the timing felt right to make this leap and enter a new market.

SGH has now been working in Atlantic Canada for the last seven (7) years, and we have grown our Atlantic studio tremendously. We have worked on a multitude of projects ranging from 2,000 sq. ft. to 100,000 sq. ft. and provide a full scope of services to our east coast clients.

2015: SGH Opened the Vancouver Office

With the success of our Atlantic office in the first year of business, SGH continued our expansion to the West Coast of Canada opening our office in Vancouver, British Columbia. We continue to service our clients nationally and our new design studio showcases our well-versed and collaborative team.

2016: SGH Rebrands

After a few small rebrands throughout the years, it was time for a new face of SGH. With the new Partners, Monika Sarkisian and John Tanfield, it was time to put their stamp on the SGH brand. The rebrand started with the design of a new logo. We outsourced incredible graphic designers to come up with a new logo and after a few months of deliberation the new logo as you see it today was born.

This new logo, inspired by the light reflection and shadows, became the kick start of a complete rebrand of SGH Design Partners. New standards, a social media presence and workplace culture emerged. This rebrand triggered the redesign of the SGH website, which was completed in 2019.

2019: Two New Director of Operations and SGH Gets a New Website

Krysia Gorgolewska became the Director of Operations for our Halifax office in 2019. After working at our Toronto office for many years and doing incredible world travels between 2018-2019, Krysia moved to Halifax and became our Director of Operations for our East Coast Office

Alexis Mrowietz became our Director of Operations for our Vancouver office also in 2019. Alexis had worked with SGH for a few years before transitioning into Director of Operations for Vancouver. Alexis is an incredibly talented designer who loves the West Coast and is the perfect fit to lead our Vancouver Team.

2020: COVID-19

 As we all know, in 2020 everything seemed to stop when COVID-19 took the world by storm and forced us all to slow down. While a lot of us transitioned to working from home, essential workers stood at the forefront, carrying the weight of this very unprecedented time. This impacted design dramatically. Design went very quickly from collaborative workspaces and open floorplans to implementing 6 ft distancing, screen dividers, and protectors between workers. Construction came to a halt and all projects were temporarily put on hold. After months of planning our approach and strategy it was clear to SGH that we believed the future includes people. We would continue to build spaces that promote human connection, even during a time where the world went virtual, it was evident that human connection would be a key factor in coming out of this pandemic.

2021: SGH Turns 35

 35 years in business!

Through many ups and downs around the world, SGH Design Partners is honoured and proud to hold its place in the interior design industry, where we continue to build connections with an incredible community. So much has changed over the last 35 years, yet many things have stayed the same at the core. We are still incredibly grateful for our team of uniquely talented individuals. We appreciate the countless connections we have made over the years, and we are humbled by just how far we have come.

When looking back at this timeline, it is just incredible to reflect on some of SGH’s milestones over the years. Today, SGH Design Partners is employing our highest number of staff to date. We have completed projects with clients across Canada and internationally and we continue to grow and develop new skills as the times change. We are incredibly thankful for the past 35 years in business and are looking forward to what the future holds.

We create environments where people do their best work

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Vibrant colours and natural materials were essential in the design of this 9,000 sq.ft. office to create a cohesive yet eclectic design representing the sustainable, organic, “be scrappy and own it” nature of the company. A journey is created through the space with bold graphics, feature lighting and reclaimed elements.

Providing a cost-effective solution for a unique and dynamic space that represents their “be scrappy and own it” philosophy. A space designed to meet the Client expectations and celebrate their culture through creative design elements.

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It was critical that SGH design a space that was a functional and efficient office space for Ivanhoe Cambridge that would reflect their company values and goals. Inspired by their new 7245 sq.ft. office in this modern industrial building, concrete, wood and dark metals were used throughout the space in combination with transparent glass which optimized the natural light and gave sightlines to the beautiful mountain and city views to the north.

Pops of blue, green, and orange are featured strategically throughout the office creating bold and fun accents that give the space a sophisticated, yet comforting feel. The space has elegant contrast with bright white counters and walls and dark metals, and lighting features throughout. These elements all work towards Ivanhoe Cambridge’s goal of a sophisticated atmosphere and leave you feeling inspired and ready to thrive in the workplace.

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After extensive evaluation with the Client considering various locations it was determined this Financial Client would move to a rural/suburban environment in the Nanaimo North Town Center Mall. This existing shopping mall is in the process of “de-malling” to revitalize and bring together both commercial and retail space in a hybrid environment.  This client selected two of the new commercial retail units (CRU) being constructed in a setting surrounded by water, forest and beautiful natural landscapes. The sacrifice, a less accessible space to the variety of social amenities offered by their existing downtown location.

The space needed to accommodate two very different user groups. The first being a louder and more energized call centre, the second a quieter, heads down, focused finance and accounting group.  Both needed lots of collaborative space with a variety of closed and open options, easily accessible and flexible.

The two user groups are buffered from each other through the creation of “collaboration avenues” which are defined by a change in flooring and a dropped wood slat ceiling feature to create refuge and visual breaks in between the open spaces. Fresh accent colours of spring green and ocean blues infuse a calming atmosphere in this open, bright and modern space. Adding three new skylights and coordinating carefully with mechanical requirements bring in additional natural light and air that fills the whole space. Large walls provide the introduction of art and graphics selected specifically to represent Nanaimo, BC.

The overall floor layout is free-flowing and organic with centralized collaboration avenues which house focus and meeting spaces. Amenities include phone booths, perch points, pause areas, training and coaching rooms set up for privacy, focus or spontaneous interactions depending on the need. These inviting spaces are open, engaging and transparent allowing light to filter through panes of glass. The curved and soft edges of the 140 workstations create an approachable friendliness that contrasts nicely against the rectangular rigid architecture allowing for a variety of ways to circulate through the space. This casual approach encourages people to interact and socialize through spontaneous happy encounters that aspire to make the workday a welcoming experience which, in the long run, helps to attract and retain great talent.

What made this space location really sing is the introduction of the employee café. It is a bright and inviting destination spot where people can gather, dine, meet and socialize. This makes up for the lack of access to eating areas close by and fosters a real community feeling. Beautiful artwork created by local artists celebrate this unique and rich indigenous community. Implementing graphics and common meeting areas such as the employee café were critical for this project’s success. Soft furniture settings and booth like seating provide a variety of uses that entice people to drop in throughout the day yet lightweight enough to allow flexibility in accommodating large town hall gatherings. Skylights were integrated to help with access to natural light, this kept the windows open and did not block light that was able to engulf the space throughout.

Through active listening the designer was able to really understand the workplace strategy, goals and significant changes required for this future office to be highly successful now and into the future. The proportion of flexible work areas to shared meeting and focused areas was clearly defined as part of the discovery process early on. In the end the open, expansive industrial space achieved this most successfully as was vetted out in the search for the right location.

The open organic workspaces are agile, flexible and spacious. Flanked by focus rooms, meeting areas, and closed areas there is a break from loud space to quiet refuge space. The approach to colours and texture are soft, natural and timeless utilizing the clean modern lines of the building space. Furniture has rounded edges and breaks from the tradition grid pattern that allow the space to have a spontaneous energy. High, large walls proudly display local artwork that define spaces, provides orientation and infuse local humour and culture.

 Client Statement

The new offices were a huge success and well received by our staff. SGH Design Partner approach to programming, data-gathering and workplace strategies allowed the SGH team to understand our goals and objectives for both short and long term.

SGH did an excellent job at integrating our standards for workplace while utilizing their creative skills to integrate a workplace that reflected the local Nanaimo culture, look and feel. The results were realized immediately. Design elements such as access to natural light for all staff, open and generous circulation space, multiple collaboration spaces, etc., have all contributed to the new design of our work environment to help improve staff morale and staff retention.

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