2020 Furniture Trends

Staying ahead of the trends when turning your office into a Positive Workplace requires insider knowledge. Following on from our last blog where we shared our Design Team’s top design trends for 2020, we work with some of the leading commercial furniture brands in the industry, so for this blog we got in touch with our friends at sixteen3, a Cheshire based firm, and asked them to share their favourite furniture trends that will shape workplace furniture this year.

Sustainability is key

With messages like ‘there is no planet B’ circulating our news feeds and Greta Thunberg being hailed as Time’s Person of the Year, sustainability is an issue at the forefront of everyone’s minds. As consumers, your staff will inevitably become aware and invested in the environment and their impact on it. With the knowledge of the detrimental effect that raw material consumption, chemical use and waste production is having on our planet, sustainably produced products are now in high demand.

From using recycled materials to designing furniture that has a sustainable life-cycle, furniture producers are creating products that have sustainability at their core.

Top tip? Look for pieces that are long-lasting and hard-wearing that can also be disassembled and recycled at their end of useful life. In 2020 your furniture will be as good to the planet as it is for your office space.

Flexible working, meet flexible spaces

Your business requirements can change overnight, and your furniture needs to be able to adapt to its changing needs when this happens. When designing your workplace fit out, consider incorporating modular furniture systems. These handy pieces allow spaces to be easily adapted, transformed and redesigned within the space making them flexible to your needs. These furniture items can be used by your team to create different configurations, meet their requirements and evolve effortlessly with your workplace.

Top tip? Select pieces that can be used in any room in your workplace. Whether it’s colour, size or purpose, selecting pieces that are adaptable in any space will prove to be a great investment in years to come.

Let the colour do the talking

One of the many things Positive Workplaces around the world have in common is their use of colour. The days of the bland and neutral walls and furniture are long behind us, and we are seeing customers incorporate their brand colours into their workplace fit outs. Why? Designers are getting more creative with their use of colour and furniture as this is a fun and simple way to add personality to any office space.

Top tip? Be brave! Colourful two-tone upholstery, contrasting zip details or bold leg finishes, there are numerous ways to inject colour into furniture pieces to bring your workplace to life.

redefine comfort

Our working habits are changing as our home and work lives are starting to blend. It’s only natural that the working environment would start to reflect this. Workplace fit outs are showing more influences on residential interior design than ever before.

Top tip? Think homely. Swap out the circle desk for soft, comfortable sofas for casual meeting spaces. Reception space uninspiring? Choose luxurious, tactile finishes like velvet, boucle wool and leather to your reception furniture. These little touches will move your Positive Workplace away from the office drab to homely and fab.

A place of privacy

Open plan offices have dominated the last decade and are unlikely to go anywhere anytime soon. However, the importance of creating smaller, private spaces within your open plans is increasingly important. Private spaces offer a place for your team members to focus, recharge or reflect on a busy day.

Top tip? Look for high-sided, soft seating booths which can be used in small team meetings or drop-in working areas. Looking for something a bit bigger? Space division systems like ‘Calvert’ or ‘Arny Adytum’ break up open spaces to create focus zones and reduce the impact of visual or acoustic distractions.

Ready to find the right furniture for you? We work with a variety of furniture designers and suppliers to bring you the pieces for your Positive Workplace. If you want to bring a breath of fresh air into your workplace without having a complete fit out, get in touch with our team to find out how some new furniture pieces can transform your space.

Meet our friends at sixteen3: we’ve been working with them for years. Their stylish, high-quality upholstery and seating created by their in-house teams have been used in many of our workplace fit outs. You can find out more about them here.