Rayanne Rzepka - ROIDESIGN

Beacon Hill Opens the Vista Lounge and Game Room

by Rayanne Rzepka | Jul 24, 2024 | Design News, Designing Public Areas, Hospitality Design, Interior Design, Procurement and Purchasing

Beacon Hill at Eastgate continues to add programs and opportunities for residents for on-campus activities. The most recent is the reopening of the Vista Lounge. This room was previously barely used, and only populated with chairs, tables, wallcoverings, and art.

We are happy to report that on opening day, the lounge was filled with people. Why? Because now:

It is a fully furnished game room, with electronic arcade games (Pac-Man and James Bond), fully appointed poker table, game tables (with embedded checkers and chess boards), nine-foot professional shuffleboard table, and a real dart board.

The room has a built-in hospitality area so drinks and food can be catered for events.

The space can be rented for groups and celebrations.

The interior was completely changed and upgraded for a “four-star” experience.

r.o.i. Design started to conceive the space with Beacon Hill leadership in the fall of 2023. As part of the process, r.o.i looked at competitive properties and their game rooms. We found that most of them had dining rooms with the opportunity to play games. Beacon Hill didn’t want an apologetic space, but a space worthy of the quality and lifestyle of the people who lived there.

The design included new finishes for all the space:

Walnut wood parquet wall

Brushed gold lighting

Luxuriously upholstered lounge seating

Lighting the existing beams with indirect LED lighting

Painted moldings and architectural panels in a luscious deep brown

Modular carpet that is unlike the printed carpets throughout the common areas at Beacon Hill

For more information about the fine living at Beacon Hill, chick here.

Click on the thumbnails below to enlarge images.

For more of our multifamily & senior living projects click here.

NeoCon 2024

by Rayanne Rzepka | Jun 26, 2024 | Interior Design

Two of our designers, Marianne and Lindsey went to NeoCon this month to see the new and exciting things in the world of commercial interior design products. They came back and are reporting on the trends they saw.

Stronger than ever commitment to sustainability and green initiatives.

PVC- free LVT flooring
“Vinyl” wallcovering with no vinyl! Bio-based and carbon neutral without all the bad chemicals.
Recyclable wallcoverings and flooring materials
Seaqual® yarns in fabrics are made from plastic bottles removed from oceans
Low embodied carbon and carbon neutral products

Color and patterns are trending towards:

Muted jewel tones
Earth tones
Not-quite-neutral color palettes with colors rooted in nature
Large scale patterns
“Grand Millennial“ floral and plaids

Furniture

Tables with thinner tops, including exploring ways to use new porcelain slabs
Forms of lounge pieces are bubbly, rounded edges, plushy, and curvilinear

Design inspiration from the old – artists, poets, and classic furniture designers
Upcycled wood from materials like chopsticks
Recycled content from electronics production waste into a new raw material for furniture components

One last thing

Have you heard? Probably not, since it is so quiet in here, but acoustic design is sticking around. It can’t be called a trend anymore. Acoustic products were more prominent this year than previously. Everyone has an offering in some form (tiles, baffles, screens, light fixtures, etc…). Materials are diversifying as well. One new product is cork wall panels that have acoustic and sustainable design qualities.

Check out our projects here!

Does your corporate space “sell”?

by Rayanne Rzepka | Jun 25, 2024 | Branding, Design News, Designing Public Areas, Graphic Design, Hospitality Design, Interior Design, Workplace Design

Does your space reflect the story you have been telling your customers about your goals, values, and successes? Does your space promote pride and loyalty among employees?

Hipcouch.com states in their article, “How the right office interior design makes or breaks a business” that the first attribute needed is a branded interior. Likewise, r.o.i. Design’s experience says that partial or complete remodeling without messaging may not yield a “return on (the) investment”.

Branding is more than a logo in the reception area and a poster in the breakroom. Notably, the integration of goals and values in all the interior materials builds the trust needed for customers to commit to a sale and employees to stay.

On an exit interview at a credit union, Mary Witte, President of r.o.i. Design, asked “How was your visit?” The response was “Awesome, the messaging, the space, and the staff were so consistent in their presentation, we immediately trusted them. We are new in town and have been shopping around for a “bank”, and this experience made the deal”.

r.o.i. Design has engaged with business owners for interior design for 30+ years. Projects that invested in interior branding have cited customer satisfaction and a reduced need to remodel, as their corporate story is not a trend and does not need re-telling.

How about your space? We offer one free consultation to hear about your business design needs. Whether it is branding the interior with company goals and values, updating spaces to build trust, or supporting your promises to be the leader you promised to be.

Some examples of branded interiors by r.o.i. Design:

Accessorizing for Comfort and Fun

by Rayanne Rzepka | Jun 25, 2024 | Design News, Home Design, Hospitality Design, Interior Design, Lighting Design, Procurement and Purchasing

One of r.o.i. Design’s good clients asked for our help supplying furnishings and accessories for their company’s family condo. Located in the Downtown entertainment district of Grand Rapids, we saw this as an opportunity to meet their deadline and stay within their budget.

We don’t often work on residential projects, but we have extensive experience designing hospitality environments for developers and owners.

This project involved replacing most of the furniture and lighting. In addition, the art and accessories, including rugs, lamps, wall décor, and tabletop items were also replaced.

We called on our favorite suppliers to find cost-effective items that could be sourced quickly. Our agreement included r.o.i. Design to hold items in our warehouse, and then delivery and installation in one or two visits. The goal was to make it as painless as possible for clients but look fantastic!

The transformation took the condo from a formal-looking space to a comfortable family space. This allowed our client to conveniently share sports events, concerts, art openings, and great restaurants with business and personal friends from near and far.

Some of our favorite items included the new dining room table and chairs, chandelier, “boho” art, and new hallway lighting.

Click on the thumbnails below to enlarge images.

How Design Impacts Hiring and Retention

by Rayanne Rzepka | May 29, 2024 | Design News, Workplace Design

r.o.i. Design responded to a call from a mid-size manufacturer who asked, “Can you help us make our Core Values more prominent in our facility?” They thought it would help them during their interview process as well as engaging existing employees.

This group had just undergone an office remodel and while things were “fresh”, they felt they weren’t communicating their purpose to employees, future employees, and customers. “We want employees to know they are coming to work not just to make parts, but their actions and leadership’s actions are part of a larger mission. They are impacting the lives of our customers and creating positive change.”

This group wants everything about their space to reflect who they are, and they realize that it is more than words and posters. Making their “brand” important impacts more than the hiring and retaining of employees.

This notion is supported by business leaders, as cited in the article “Importance of Interior Design to Grow your Business” written by Ideagram for LinkedIn.

“Design creates culture. Culture shapes values. Values determine the future.” — Robert L. Peters. Interior design is an opportunity to reflect your brand identity. Your physical space should align with your company’s values and vision. (1.)

“Design is the last great competitive advantage.” — Seth Godin. A thoughtfully designed interior has the potential to enhance the overall customer experience and set you apart from the competition.

“Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.” — Steve Jobs. A well-designed interior can enhance the functionality of your space. Through thoughtful layout planning and efficient use of space, you can optimize workflow and improve productivity.

A master plan for branding design can be created thoughtfully and rolled out over time as budget and buy-in allow. For our mid-size manufacturer, the process had to start with leadership, making sure they were all on board to make communicating the brand a high priority. A priority worth the investment in design.