Call for Entries Open July 1: Business Interiors by Staples to award $10,000 for Winning Designs
Students, emerging designers and industry professionals can architect their vision for the workplace of the future in a competition hosted by Business Interiors by Staples, the furniture and interior design division of Staples Advantage, and Metropolis, the magazine of architecture, culture and design. The second annual contest, Workplace of the Future 2.0, starts July 1, 2014 with a call for entries that invites architects and designers to submit concepts that depict how the workplace will change in the next 10-15 years.
Key trends that emerged from last year's contest included reclaiming urban space, re-imagining office furniture, employee-centric design and fostering hyper-collaboration.
The workplace is changing rapidly, with 8,000 Baby Boomers reaching retirement each day, Millennials entering with new expectations and technology blurring our personal and professional lives. With these trends as the backdrop, Workplace of the Future 2.0 will highlight how design visionaries respond with ways to reinvent how we work.
"Digitization and innovations in technology have transformed how we work, play and experience the world," said Metropolis Publisher and Editor in Chief, Susan S. Szenasy. "They have also changed the way workers interact and use their physical work space. These innovations allow designers to re-imagine what's possible. This competition is a great opportunity for architects and designers to unleash their creativity and re-imagine workspaces."
"The design community responded with incredible vision and ingenuity, which helped the architecture and design community understand the evolving needs of a mobile, virtual 21st century workforce," said John Michael, Vice President and General Manager, Business Interiors by Staples. "This year's competition will foster conversations and concepts about digitally connected, productive, sustainable and healthy workplaces."
Business Interiors by Staples is the contract furniture and design arm of Staples Advantage, the business-to-business division of Staples, Inc. With more than 25 years of providing quality furniture solutions, it helps organizations of all types and sizes--from small, local companies to large Fortune 1000 companies--create more productive, healthy and sustainable workspaces. It is one of the largest contract furniture dealers in North America and one of the only companies with direct relationships with more than 250 manufacturers.
