Axis House elevated Handelsbanken’s Bournemouth offices with a Scandi-inspired aesthetic, combining a bold color palette and flexible spaces to reflect the bank’s brand identity and enhance employee well-being.
Creating a cohesive aesthetic for one of Sweden’s leading banks
Featuring a Scandi-inspired design with a bold colour palette, Handelsbanken’s new offices in Bournemouth provide flexible, welcoming spaces which closely reflect the bank’s brand identity.
A multi-national bank with more than 160 branches across the UK, Handelsbanken needed to increase the capacity of their Bournemouth office. AxisHouse was tasked with fitting out their new, larger premises, following specific brand guidelines to achieve visual parity across all the bank’s offices.
The Handlesbanken team appointed AxisHouse for our Corporate Identity experience and our reputation for delivering exceptional quality in a timely manner. Choosing a local partner with UK-wide fit-out capability was also strategically important.
Taking inspiration from Handelsbanken’s Swedish origins, the new office features a bold colour palette of blues and greys with an emphasis on natural materials, warm textures and geometric patterns.
To create welcoming spaces for both staff and visiting customers, we designed a flexible layout comprising of a large boardroom that can be divided in two via folding doors, a pair of ‘Zoom rooms’ for private meetings, a fire-resistant storage room for confidential documents, a kitchen-café area, and open-plan desking.
Having completed previous Fit-outs at the Ocean 80 building for Platinum Group and Glenigan, we drew on that local experience to deliver on budget and within a tight nine-week programme.
Design Details
• The design features geometric patterns to reference the company’s Swedish origins, such as those on the boardroom back panel, the wallpaper in the ‘Zoom room’ and the kitchen splashback.
• The Milliken carpet selected for the boardroom is made from ECONYL® 100% recycled nylon. It brings welcome texture as well as acoustic and sustainability benefits.
• Acoustic ceiling baffles make the offices as audibly pleasant as possible.
• The large boardroom can be used flexibly thanks to a folding dividing wall which can split the space in two.
A focus on wellbeing
To support the well-being of the Handelsbanken team, our WELL-accredited designers introduced sit-stand desks and ergonomic seating, positioning workstations near windows to maximise natural light. We also added generous planting throughout the offices to bring nature into the workspace.
Meeting sustainability objectives
We aim to take a sustainable approach wherever possible. For this project, we specified herringbone woodgrain LVT with a low carbon footprint, as well as tables, chairs and soft seating from British manufacturer Allermuir, selected for their sustainability focus.
Flexible spaces delivered on time, on budget and on brand
Dovetailing smoothly with the bank’s other contractors, our team followed the brand guidelines to the letter to create a cohesive and stylish interior for Handelsbanken with flexible spaces, open-plan desking and a kitchen-café area.
The client was particularly impressed with AxisHouse’s communication style, project management and attention to detail.
Design: Axis House
Photography: Mikey Reed
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