CASE STUDY: CANOPY Menlo Park, a new design-forward coworking hub with a unique sense of place
Post-pandemic, more companies are adopting or fully committing to a hybrid workforce model, moving away from Zoom calls to meet in physical spaces where they can be more present and create deeper connections.
Workspaces have also become more casual. People are less likely to maintain dedicated desks and transition through various environments throughout the day: working at a communal table, taking calls in quiet spots, and collaborating in meeting rooms before attending an after-hours event. These elements, along with carefully considered lounge areas and food service, are essential components of a well-rounded experiential office environment designed to last and be a pleasure to work within.
Amir Mortazavi, the co-founder of CANOPY and interiors and architectural design firm Studio Mortazavi, creates spaces that reflect specific use cases and take inspiration from the surrounding urban fabric and natural landscape.
Here, Amir shares how he designed CANOPY Menlo Park for coworking in 2023 and beyond.
What are the most important considerations for a company seeking a coworking space for a remote or hybrid workforce?
“It’s important that people can come to the office when necessary. More space can be allotted per person now that fewer people are going into the office. Spaces for personal desks can be repurposed as a communal workstation used by multiple people: a large table for 12 people becomes a hub for 25 employees. Flexibility within the workspace is key: there need to be areas where you can do deep work distraction-free in an inspirational space; they also need to be able to gather with others in informal ways.”
“The style of the place in terms of materials, colors, natural light, lack of clutter, with or without plants are all important in creating a beautiful environment where employees can do their best work. Spaces should be designed holistically, and I think it’s essential they’re not too chaotic–if there are 10 different types of chairs and four different types of tables, it seems like everything was bought at a flea market.”
How do you approach designing CANOPY locations?
“I always try to tell a story of the space in relation to the requirements it needs to fulfill and its surroundings–that’s how I come up with the elements, colors, and materials. The key questions to answer are whether we will allocate space to large suites, whether we need a café or restaurant in this space or just a break room, and how many conference rooms and phone booths should be accommodated. Then we plan spaces, thinking about what would create the most efficient layout, harness natural light, and offer the best user experience possible.”
How does Menlo Park complement CANOPY’s other locations?
“Each has its own identity. Our first location, CANOPY Pacific Heights, was created to serve the needs of people like myself who were living in the city and wanted to walk to work without going downtown. We designed it with individuals or teams of two or three people in mind: our tagline was ‘a beautiful place to work in your neighborhood.’ Â CANOPY Jackson Square is much more spacious and can accommodate larger teams, yet it is located in an intimate, central neighborhood among design boutiques and restaurants. Menlo Park is by far our largest location. We had to consider how people will use our space in relation to the multi-use Springline development, which includes apartments, restaurants, and commercial spaces. We factored in creating an elevated user experience for the Menlo Park market.”
CANOPY Menlo Park design elements and motifs
CANOPY Menlo Park is six times the size of CANOPY Pacific Heights and is located on the ground floor of the Springline development in a building which is all new construction.
As with all CANOPY locations, the surrounding area inspired Menlo Park’s design. The color palette is informed by grasslands dotted with oak trees around the Stanford Dish and the green and brown foliage of the Santa Cruz Mountains.
Clay tiles and terracotta tones reference the roofs and patterned stone walls of Stanford University’s main quadrangle. They are used to both create a visual cue that connects extended spaces and create modular partitions within them.
Asymmetric custom shelves and partition walls inspired by primary shapes riff on and integrate the structural cross-bracings present in the space. Sisal rugs in offices below coffered ceilings in concrete, terracotta, and wicker further the organic feel of the environment.
Because this is a new building in a new development, vintage furniture–much of which is made from solid wood–gives common areas a sense of context and provenance.
CANOPY Menlo Park incorporates Canteen, a full-service café overseen by renowned chef Greg Kuzia-Carmel. Chef Kuzia-Carmel cooked at Per Se in New York City and Quince in San Francisco, both of which have three Michelin stars, before opening his own rustic, Californian outpost Camper–also recommended by the Guide–in Menlo Park in 2018.
Modern tables are mixed with custom pieces that feature dried native foliage and flowers collected on hikes in the Santa Cruz Mountains and coastline around Half Moon Bay, embedded within resin surfaces. This biophilic design element connects the workspace with the wild natural setting beyond the development.
About Amir Mortazavi
Amir Mortazavi is a Co-Founder of CANOPY and the founder of Studio Mortazavi, an interiors and architectural design firm with offices in San Francisco, Lisbon, and Paris. The Studio has led myriad commercial, residential, and speculative development projects, designed the first 3D printed school, delivered projects for the Gagosian Gallery, and realized all CANOPY coworking spaces. Amir resides in Lisbon and is a collector and supporter of the arts.