World Platform Service Co., Ltd., a World Group company, started office space design and construction this spring as a BtoB business. It is a rare case for an apparel maker to handle space design and construction, and we will expand it with proposals for new work styles in the future.

What kind of space is created by a fashion company that makes use of the knowledge cultivated through many brand developments and store openings, and what are the thoughts behind it? I interviewed President Ishii and project manager Niu at the office of Narumiya International, which was renewed last December.

――Could you tell us about the background and purpose of the decision to renovate, given that work style reforms have been talked about for a long time, and the way offices are changing due to the covid-19 pandemic?

Ishii: With the ability to work remotely from anywhere, it would be great if we could foster a feeling of loyalty as a member of Narumiya International (hereafter, Narumiya) based on where we belong. I think we need a place where we can meet together and use it freely.

――Is it a place that leads to employee engagement?

Ishii: Our work is completed not only among employees, but also through communication with business partners. Above all, we are in the field of "fashion", so we envisioned a space where creative ideas can spread. Narumiya has more than 20 brands and about 200 people at this headquarters, but I wanted to promote communication beyond departments. Multiple timings overlapped, and I asked Mr. Niu.

Niu: The World office was just being renovated, and President Ishii took a look at it. When coming up with the concept, you did a lot of research on how offices have changed, including examples from overseas. This is where the concept of ABW* came into being. We wanted to create an office that was necessary because we could work “anytime, anywhere.”

*ABW: Activity Based Working. A work style that allows you to choose and decide where you can work efficiently.

Niu: Even before the corona crisis, co-working, shared offices, and free addresses were being talked about. However, with the corona crisis, "home" has suddenly become the base, and the reasons for going to the office are diminishing.

Based on President Ishii's desire to "want a place to gather", I proposed that it be used not only as a comfortable place but also as a space where each person can choose a place. It is a very large office of 900 tsubo per floor including the office, of which 180 tsubo is this office lounge.

-- Did the concept of ABW come from overseas?

Niu: So it was conceived by a Dutch consulting company in the 1990s. Hundreds of companies seem to have experimented with this as a model that achieves both employee satisfaction (ES) and a smaller space, so it simultaneously achieves corporate efficiency and ultimately increases productivity. It is a model that has improved performance and employee satisfaction.

――How did you feel when you saw the 14th floor PARK renovated by World?

Ishii: I felt that the company's stance was expressed in an easy-to-understand manner as part of "employee satisfaction."

World Kita-Aoyama Building 14F PARK by World Platform Service
Image: Nacasa and Partners

■ Free space and margins are becoming more important

Ishii: Everywhere is now steadily improving efficiency and productivity. Of course, no one wants to run loosely anymore, and it's necessary to be tight, but I think it's important to have leeway or margins that seem wasteful at first glance.

――While eliminating waste, there is also a culture that is stripped away.

Niu: As an example of lighting, emphasis is placed on ambient lighting that creates an atmosphere, rather than direct task lighting that only illuminates dark objects. This is just one example, and I feel that white space is becoming more and more important in the field of space design, while demanding functionality.

Ishii: Since we were talking about functions, how many years ago? Around 1992 or 1993, I launched a brand at my previous company, but when it didn't get off to a good start, the president at the time told me to become an apprentice to a great master of the fashion world, so I visited an apartment in Aoyama. There, I was taught many times that the fashion business incorporates the mood of the current era into clothes. He said to me, "Ishii-kun must feel the spirit and power of today's youth." Trends and common information are useless, go to the site and experience the energy. "I'm feeling right now," was an abstract but nice word.

Tanu: That's a good word. The world of real clothing is, after all, “now,” and you have to have experience to grasp it.

Ishii: You can find anything on the internet now, right? It's like knowing everything to the ends of the earth. But it's kind of superficial. That's why I think it's important to have a place where we can talk and touch things through our new office.

――It’s something that comes out of conversations outside the agenda of meetings when employees get together.

Ishii: Even if you work in a closed office, you can only do ready-made products with tasks drawn. It's like interacting with someone, being inspired by that, and suddenly awakening.

Niu: It's a chemical change, isn't it?

Ishii: Yes, of course, no matter where you are, there are moments where you have a flash of inspiration, but I want this office to be the catalyst for that. On the contrary, the more digital I became, the more important things like soil, trees, natural winds, and scents were, and I also incorporated many plants.

Narumiya International President Ishii

Niu: Green feels good, doesn't it? It seems that the number of mobilization is overwhelmingly large for things with the theme of plants such as the Flower Expo. There are trees, and people gather under the trees to create shade, which leads to monetization for the first time. President Ishii planted a tree as a mark of this place among various brands in Narumiya. This tree was selected by President Ishii himself.

Image: Nacasa and Partners

Ishii: I chose it according to the space and the height of the ceiling. It seems that the sprouts have come out again here and have been fitting in this place.

■The concept is "Terminal". A place to clarify where everyone is going

Niu: The concept of this space is an "airfield terminal", and while there are people working in various roles, we made a clear flow line that can be recognized as their own space. Airports are pretty straightforward. I thought it would be good to simplify the line of flow as a place for Narumiya to express his intentions together with business partners and manufacturers.

World Platform Service Mr. Niu

■ In addition to reusing existing flooring materials, multiple recycled materials are also used.

Niu: Design is business-centered, but I wanted to increase social and public nature. Some of the pillars are made of a material called Keimu, which is made from coal ash from thermal power plants and waste coffee beans. Then, President Ishii said, "Reuse the flooring material that was originally used in the company."

Ishii: When I came to Narumiya in 2010, I was surprised that there was no business meeting room in the company. They were having business talks near their respective desks. That's the flooring when I started by making a business meeting room. I had a fondness for it, so if I could use it, I would like it to be reused. But I was surprised to see it come back so beautifully.

Niu: Mukunoki is a good material, so if you shave it, it will come back to life. It's a waste to throw it away, you can still use it, the material can live many times.

――Since 2010, have you envisioned a “conversational” office that will lead to the present?

Ishii: In that sense, it may be so.

Niu: As a result of ABW, it seems that employees are making more decisions. "Let's do this job in this seat" or "This is in the conference room", even if it's a small thing, the number of employees making decisions will increase, and after a few years the results will come out.

Ishii: It's easy to understand that the will is included. I wondered what the real goodness of the free address system was, but of course there were many people who met face to face, but when I actually saw them, there were a lot of them alone. There are many scenes where I concentrate alone in a space where everyone else is. That little chair is popular.

Popular space for one person after installation Image: Nacasa and Partners

Niu: Single seats allow you to concentrate on your work and are very popular around the world.

――All the employees are making good use of the space, but will President Ishii also use it?

Ishii: I use it myself, and I often walk around looking at employees. I also water the plants (laughs).

――Looking ahead to the post-corona era, please let us know if you would like to make use of this space.

Ishii: The product exhibition was suspended due to the corona crisis, but I would like to resume it this spring and hold it here. In addition, it would be nice if it could become a famous place in a sense as a developing space where various people gather, such as using it at lunchtime. After the renewal, employees in the field began to ask frankly, "I want something like this."

――What you want in the office has changed, and you've become more aware of "our own place".

It must be beautiful here at night.

Ishii: It's beautiful at night too. From my office window, I can see the Tokyo Tower and the night view. Please come and visit us.

Image: Nacasa and Partners

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Narumiya International Co., Ltd. Representative Director and President Toshiaki Ishii
Joined Point Co., Ltd. in June 1990, President and CEO of Point Co., Ltd. in July 2006, President and CEO of Narumiya International Co., Ltd. in June 2010 (current position).
At Point Co., Ltd. (currently Adastria), he launched Lawry's Farm and served as president.
After taking office as president of Narumiya International, he set out to break away from the business model that relied on conventional department stores, started SC sales channels and EC, increased performance with a multi-channel strategy, and relisted in September 2018.

World Platform Service Co., Ltd. Project Manager Hiroyuki Niu
Joined World Co., Ltd. in 1987. Assigned to the decoration department at the Kobe head office.
After designing specialty stores, in 1996, he designed and planned the first apparel business in a station location, Shibuya Tokyu Toyoko "Index", and in 1998, "OPAQUE", a pioneering large-scale editorial store. Since 2000, he has been involved in the development of new businesses. Currently, in addition to directing creative human resources, he is also involved in producing external sales businesses that make use of the know-how of the World Group.