KAR identified a few primary goals: to break down barriers between internal departments, to serve local team members with the best workplace in the region, to help global employees feel immediately comfortable when they visit, and to create a visually stunning building in suburban environment.
We focused on interiors, first — programming, understanding needs up-front, and testing ideal footprints and configurations. Employees needed more meeting spaces, private spaces, social areas, places for collaboration, and useful amenities, like a coffee shop and a clinic. We oriented the experience around a monumental stair at the corner of the building. Starting from that central axis, energetic, social zones give way to quieter, focus-work zones as you move outward from the stair to the wings. And privacy-on-demand spaces offer maximum flexibility. The result is connected, comfortable, and intuitive.
Then, we turned our attention to the exterior. Sleek, black, all-glass, and otherworldly, we designed an unexpectedly striking suburban headquarters. Situated along a well-trafficked thoroughfare, next to popular retail and epicurean destinations, it certainly gets attention. KAR’s global headquarters is a new local landmark and an alluring tech magnet.
