Maximizing Value: Five Common Design Mistakes to Avoid in Lobby Repositioning for Commercial Buildings

One of the most significant mistakes in lobby renovation is proceeding without gathering input from current and prospective tenants. Failure to understand what your tenants’ needs and preferences are can lead to a lobby redesign that misses the mark. Engaging with current tenants through surveys or focus groups to identify pain points, desires, and expectations is essential. Your architectural partner can add tremendous value in assisting your team in developing simple strategies to compile meaningful feedback. This invaluable insight will guide your renovation efforts toward tenant satisfaction and ensure the ROI of the renovation is valuable long-term.

Ignoring budget constraints during the design process is another common mistake. While lobby renovations can enhance a property's value, not communicating or neglecting your budget during the design phase, or worse, not defining a budget to begin with, puts you at risk of spending time and resources on a design that you may not be able to execute. Furthermore, your team would then need to allocate additional time and budget for a value engineering exercise, increasing the project’s overall expenses.

Begin with a well-defined budget, then understand the priorities for the proposed efforts and adhere to them to ensure that your plans align with your financial capabilities. Your design partners should collaborate with your team to assist in prioritizing essential upgrades to manage costs and achieve your goals.

It’s a missed opportunity to design for only a single function. Modern lobbies can be so much more than attractive, welcoming spaces for tenants to pass through. Turn your lobby into a versatile space that tenants (and the public) can utilize for meetings, workshops, social gatherings, and private events. Invest in movable furniture, thoughtful acoustic measures, advanced AV equipment, and even utilities for catering prep space to accommodate a variety of functions.

The modern workplace is evolving, with a growing emphasis on flexible working arrangements and collaboration. To cater to these trends, create inviting seating areas in your lobby with a mix of comfortable furniture and charging stations. Encourage spontaneous meetings and networking by providing adaptable spaces that tenants can use for casual discussions or impromptu work sessions. In today's world, where tenants are trying to "earn the commute" of their employees, it's crucial to create an environment that offers more benefits than working from home.

Incorporating your brand into your lobby design is not just about aesthetics; it's a powerful tool for enhancing your brand's presence, fostering meaningful connections, and ensuring a more successful and enduring impact on your visitors and your business as a whole. Seamlessly weaving your brand’s identity into the design of your lobby, whether through brand colors, logo, artwork, overall look and feel or even physical embodiment of company values, allows your space to become a powerful storytelling tool.

Biophilic design connects people with nature, and incorporating it into your lobby design can have a profound impact on the end result and the user’s experience. Consider adding elements such as indoor plants and other plant installations, natural materials like wood and stone, and ample natural light. 

This sensory immersion in nature stimulates creativity and reduces stress, ultimately leading to increased productivity and job satisfaction. In today's world, where remote work is increasingly common, biophilic design offers a unique allure, a connection to nature, and a reminder that the office can be an inspiring, rejuvenating place to work that fosters collaboration and innovation.

Repositioning and renovating a building's lobby is a strategic move that can enhance its attractiveness, boost property value, increase tenant satisfaction, and attract new tenants. However, avoiding these aforementioned mistakes is essential to maximizing the benefits. By seeking tenant input, understanding and adhering to budget constraints, prioritizing flexibility, incorporating your brand identity, and providing biophilic design elements, property owners can ensure a successful lobby renovation project that yields positive returns and a more competitive commercial building in today's market.