Hygge and cosiness are perhaps not the first things that spring to mind when you think of a bank branch. Don’t such spaces usually tend to be rather austere and practical?
We believe that banks can be cosy, too. “Our customer, Raiffeisenbank Bodensee-Leiblachtal in Hard, wanted to design the new housing centre completely differently,” says Lucas Mayer, Sales Manager at our Lustenau location in Vorarlberg. This means rooms where you can sit at a table as though you were with friends, and feel welcome and well looked after – even during a consultation on property financing.
The location is the market town of Hard in Vorarlberg, idyllically situated between the southern shore of Lake Constance and the mountains of the Bregenz Forest, with a population of just under 14,000.
The starting point is an inconspicuous 1970s building, where prospective property buyers will be advised in the future. The ground floor rooms are somewhat hidden under the roof. We made the most of the 140 square metres of space available, which has lots of potential.
“It was a project that I really enjoyed,” says our architect, Edna Pfeffer. ‘You could sense right away that the customer wanted something special and that we were allowed to be creative.’ We love being creative and contributing ideas.
The specifications for the new residential construction centre are simple: see and be seen without compromising on discretion. After all, who wants to feel like they’re being watched through the shop window during a consultation? At the same time, our customer wanted the new consulting centre to catch the eye, despite it being located under a roof board. Visibility is now ensured by yellow stripes in the corporate identity colour, which run like a ribbon around the window areas.
In terms of the interior, flexibility and an open floor plan were required to make the 140 square metres appear as airy and spacious as possible. That’s why Edna named the project ‘We invite you to our loft’: a combination of modern, minimalist style and large windows with an open floor plan.
We love a challenge. As Sophia says, “It’s just nicer to find solutions together than to simply implement what’s on paper. That’s why we get the best out of each area by using fewer materials.” The focus of all our projects is always on going the extra mile, because we optimise every detail until something good becomes something special.
The open kitchen area, complete with barista flair, welcomes customers as soon as they enter. They can enjoy a coffee in the living room-style atmosphere of the consultation centre. Work areas have been created at the back, enabling both individual and collaborative work. Thanks to the flexible furnishings, the room can also be enlarged to accommodate events or lectures.
As always, we have considered every detail, from the lighting design to the wall decorations. For example, Edna has incorporated the natural surroundings of the market town of Hard into the design: Lake Constance and wooded slopes are reflected in the consultation and work areas, including watercolour-style wallpaper. In short, we offer equal consultation and a coffee: this is banking with the hygge factor.
