Like our colourful urban location in SoMa, the Kiwi Landing Pad differs greatly from many other co-working spaces in the world.. We don’t have polished concrete floors, exposed wooden beams, whitewashed walls, large exuberant spaces and plentiful refrigerators. Part of its charm is how understated and homely it feels. It’s not ostentatious, just professional, functional and simple.
Kiwi Landing Pad is comparable to a massive living room full of desks. It’s a place to hang out. The carpet keeps the sound down, we have more than your average amount of plants, possibly one of the greenest offices in the city, modern furniture, and many dynamic working spaces to sit, stand or lounge in. It’s a place to create from and collaborate.
More than just feeling comfortable, we’ve built a space that’s quiet, dynamic and allows for myopic focus. The perfect environment to build a business, develop a career, work on your ideas or foster relationships within our community.
As a technology centric space, most of our residents spend large amounts of time engrossed in screens. So it was key for the new environment to feel like the anti-screen. It had to feel close to nature, as much as possible in an urban setting. We’ve used technology to create ambient lighting that follows the trajectory of the sun but also can stimulate concentration and relaxation. We’ve also added a social sound system, where anyone in the office can connect through their phones and play some beats.
The trajectory of a working day here is very similar to working from home, and we’ve had great feedback from our residents. You come in, grab some coffee, and have your morning chat at your standing desk while checking your emails. Wholefoods is just down the road, and the food trucks are plentiful in SOMA. Sometimes Kiwi Landing Pad is like a library, other times there’s a constant quiet stream of chatter and some reggae playing in the background. Between the sofas, the tables, the beautiful rooftop and the surrounding cafes, the desks are often our least used furniture in the office. People here work while standing, leaning, lying down, eating, whatever. You’d be amazed how couches can accommodate deep, concentrated coding sessions as easily as lunchtime catchups..
At Kiwi Landing Pad, we don’t have any rules except to be respectful and open. We have everything we need to be functional and zero pretensions.
Give people variety to stimulate their creativity - sit, stand, lounge or join a big collective table - take your pick we have them all.
Make people’s world extend beyond that of their screen - bamboo jungles, green walls, plants, nature & lots of oxygen.
Let technology fuel the environment - natural & ambient lighting to suit the mood and music to play along.
Post by Sian Simpson - Community Manager - Kiwi Landing Pad