CommonGrounds,
Fort Worth

Project Highlights

• We worked as close support partners to ensure this project was delivered on time and on budget. 

• We introduced an off-the-shelf, flexible internal wall solution that would allow CommonGrounds to reconfigure internal office space easily and inexpensively, depending on their clients’ needs.

• We value-engineered and coordinated manufacturing for custom furnishings to ensure these items met aesthetic, budget, and time constraints. 

• On a one-week timeline in preparation for the opening event, we sourced and installed interior decor items for select spaces so potential clients could visualize what it would be like to work at this location.

We have partnered with CommonGrounds, noted innovators in the collaborative workspace world, for eighteen projects across seven states. This story is about their Fort Worth location. Our scope of work for all CommonGrounds projects included a modular wall system, desking stations for the workspaces, and furniture and decor for the common areas. We also value-engineered custom elements while paying careful attention to lead times, speeding up the process without sacrificing the aesthetics of the project.

To start on boarding clients for their Fort Worth space, CommonGrounds first had to get them in the door. The sooner the space could open to clients, the sooner CommonGrounds would see a return on their investment in the space and its furnishings. Every moment was precious, so much of our focus was on achieving the earliest possible first day of business. To make this happen, we kept our focus on short delivery times for both common space pieces and core items like workstations and task chairs. We also maintained an inventory stock list of workstation elements in storage and a secondary list of ancillary pieces that could be incorporated quickly as needed, further shortening lead times.

CommonGrounds also wanted to be able to show potential clients a fully realized concept as quickly as possible. We supported this by furnishing and decorating six individual offices with a range of furniture and decor pieces before the complete space was built out. We sourced and installed in-stock items that fit into our design scheme and could ship within just a few days.

CommonGrounds envisioned a contemporary aesthetic for this location, which called for grays, blacks, and blues and wool and tight linen fabrics. Overall, the look verged on industrial and was anything but rustic, despite the space’s home in the heart of Texas.

CommonGrounds offers common spaces that are freely accessible for all of its users. They’re perfect for relaxing on breaks, chatting, or simply changing your scenery. These spaces serve as shared informal meeting and work areas, furnished to feel just as chic and comfortable as your own living room. Unlike the sectioned office spaces and workstations, they’re never rented out to individual businesses.

For the common spaces in the Fort Worth location, we sourced most of the major pieces, including the glass wall system, desks, sofas, and coffee tables, as well as decor like the rugs and tabletop items.

Biophilia, or the inclusion of plants in indoor design, was key to this space’s look and feel, once again evoking our own houseplant-packed living rooms. Even though we didn’t design and source this element, we carefully chose furniture and decor items to complement it. For us, this didn’t mean going rustic and outdoorsy, à la Texas tradition: instead, we evoked a modern feel with grays, black, and blues in smooth, sleek textures and fabrics.

We matched up three stylish, high-functioning pieces for dedicated work areas, Pair’s Belay desk, SitOnIt’s Novo task chair, and Tecno’s glass walls. These trusty “Day One” components inhabit not just the Fort Worth office, but all eighteen CommonGrounds' locations we designed, providing continuity and consistent quality across their spaces. So exactly what makes them so indispensable?

Pair’s Belay desk from their off-the-shelf line merges adjustability and user comfort with top-tier contemporary style that sets it apart from standard workstations. Its details include a matte finish, high-quality laminate top, and rounded feet and edges. For an office in need of a whopping 385 desks, these benefits made a huge bottom-line difference to our client. Belay is also easy to assemble and store: another major plus, considering CommonGrounds’ changing space needs for its different businesses. The black metal matte base and a Messina top we chose for all the desks lend every office across the country a cohesive look. This consistency also made it easy for us to hold desks in inventory and for CommonGrounds to transfer them seamlessly between locations, saving them precious time when opening or adapting offices.

Ergonomic Novo chairs are both sleek in look and highly adjustable, hitting the perfect balance of form and function. Plus, they come with a wide range of colors and accents, so they can match the vibe of any space.

We introduced the CommonGrounds team to Tecno’s unique glass-and-metal internal dividing walls. These modular walls achieve a contemporary aesthetic while also being fully adaptable to CommonGrounds’ changing renter needs. In a futuristic, design-forward upgrade of the boring gray cubicle, they elegantly separate spaces and reduce sound. Like Belay and Novo, Tecno’s walls are made with standard parts, so orders of new walls are quick and painless. Best of all, the walls can be reconfigured and moved easily, meaning that each incoming CommonGrounds client can step into a space that’s shaped just for them.

By crafting a workstation arrangement based around the Belay desk, Novo task chair, and Tecno glass walls, we achieved CommonGrounds’ need for quick turnaround and low costs without sacrificing an ounce of style. All in all, our three core elements facilitated budget and timeline constraints while maintaining high standards of quality, adjustability, and design.

Yet another distinctive aspect of CommonGrounds’ collaborative offices is the set of multi-use auxiliary spaces they provide. These common spaces differ from the living room–style areas by featuring flexible arrangements of furnishings. They’re laid out with furniture to unwind, eat, work, or chat in, but their tables and chairs can also be shifted around to accommodate informal meetings and groups of all sizes. The space suits anything from a one-on-one with a client over coffee to a quick team lunch meeting to a casual staff gathering.

We worked with Minnesota-based, family-owned company Eastvold Furniture to fabricate high-top hardwood tables seen here. Built on casters, these multi-use tables can be reconfigured easily for different meetings, gatherings, and events. CommonGrounds’ team designed a table with the look they wanted, then we worked to engineer and coordinate fabrication so their dream tables fit within both budget and project timeline constraints.

For the auxiliary spaces adjacent to the café and entry, CommonGrounds designed the benches and bar counter. two specced everything else to complement these built-in items, including larger pieces like the chairs, tables, side tables, and high-top stools, as well as the artwork, vases, and small table-top items.