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Photos © Kozo Takayama

Client : Beacon Communications, Tokyo

Architects : Klein Dytham Architecture, Tokyo

Photography: Kozo Takayama

Thanks : Yoshiko Hayashi @ Klein Dytham Architecture for photos and text

Beacon is a new advertising agency. It is a merger of 3 agencies Leo Burnet,

D’Arcy and Denstu. The newly formed Beacon wanted to move into offices which

reflected their new approach to advertising and allowed for a new working

style. Communication between the 300 staff within the agency was seen as the key. 

The office should generate cross over between the staff at every possible

opportunity. More talking, more chance meetings, more ‘what are you doing’,

more ‘what’s that you are working on’.

Many of the initial meeting took place in Deluxe, our shared open studio.

Many meetings happen at the same time within Deluxe with no real division.

Everybody knows what is going on. The chance cross over between the 5

companies which share the space is very strong. Beacon wanted something

similar, something as flexible. An office which could regroup as new brands

emerged and old brands disappeared. This meant turning away from the

enclosed offices and cubicles that everyone was used to and moving to very

open offices.

JR Tokyu Meguro building is built over the Yamanote train line and the new

Mekama line station, which gives the building a column free space 60m long x

15m wide. The long side of the plan faces west with stunning views. The

core wall faces east, with the south and north windows looking up and down

the train tracks. This lead to us putting leaving the west side of the

building for all the open plan desks – so everyone could enjoy the view and

feel the daylight. The meeting and multipurpose areas were then positioned

in a long line adjacent the core wall. This accentuated the length of the

building making the over all space more dynamic and went with the energy of

the tracks below the building.

Some area of the meeting and multipurpose areas needed to be enclosed some

need to be open. To accommodate this we developed a ribbon which connected

all the rooms acting as a ceiling in some rooms, wall in another, a stage

area in another. Some times the ribbon was glazed in sometimes it was left

open allowing the space to spill out into the main office.

There are no enclosed private offices – even for the directors. Everyone has

their own private workstation, but they are only a few steps from the ribbon

where there can find a small office to have a private conversation in or a

quiet meeting. The 6 directors do not even there own desk they work around

12m long dining table with the company president. The idea is to break down

the formality of the management area – anyone within the company can pull up

one of the 20 dining chairs around the table and chat to the directors.

Beacon decided upon floor themes to divide the agency. Woman, Man, Family

and Community. For example on the woman floor a hair saloon and beauty

centre are a part of the ribbon, spilling out from an open ‘stage’ section

of the ribbon. The family floor revolves around a fully functional kitchen

with cooking and laundry facilities. New washing products can be tested and

demonstrated here.

Materials and colours too revolve around the themed floors. The ribbon on

the male floor is steel, the ribbon on the family floor is wood and the

ribbon on the female floor is pink snake skin!

The office has a dual purpose acting as a showroom for future clients,

almost advertising for the agency itself!

The office is seen almost as a living room – after all you spend more of

your ‘awake’ time in the office than you do at home. In fact Beacon see the

move as ‘okarinasai’ welcome home – they have gone back home – down town in

Meguro where they are closer to the consumers than their previous bases in

the business districts of Tokyo and the office too offers a warm welcoming

place to work.


Total Communication