NEW YORK CITY– Vocon, a national architect and design firm, has teamed up with Droga5, an advertising agency for its expansion in what is an unlikely submarket for the ad firm: Downtown Manhattan.

The 40,000-square-foot project spans floors 7, 8 and 9, with a grand staircase connecting to the 10th floor. The expansion is meant to accommodate Droga5's continued growth at 120 Wall St., which includes the existing 2nd, 11, 12 and 14th floors that Vocon also helped design dating back to 2014.

"The company moved downtown when a lot of advertising agencies weren't, and made a name for themselves," Kate McGoldrick, senior project designer at Vocon, tells GlobeSt.com. "Droga5 has experienced so much growth in a short period, going from 15 people to 400 – and went from a startup to a legitimate company."

As Droga5 dispersed throughout the building, they wanted to create the same aesthetic and at a cheaper cost. The Vocon design team utilized the usual Droga5 design elements of black, white, and walnut, concrete floors, and metal accents for a sophisticated and warm industrial feel. The design team also incorporated their brand palette with shades of blue throughout the space to ensure the fluidity of company branding and design on the other floors.

Floor layouts are a mix of open space and offices to create clearly-defined areas for client interfacing, collaboration and production. A consistent aesthetic throughout the space was key for the ad company that is considered a transplant in the Downtown market typically reserved for other sectors.

The 9th floor offered an opportunity to streamline existing Droga5 offices and the new space with multi-functional features. Vocon created a large-format pantry and café area and informal lounge seating to promote collaboration and impromptu meetings and cultural events within Droga5's daily office activity.

Executives needed office spaces in the perimeter of the building, which continued conversations about floors 7,8,9, and how could space become more comfortable and flexible for future growth, according to McGoldrick.

Instant Insights /

Architecture Firm Designs Expansion for Downtown Manhattan Ad Agency

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