An Office Where the Waves of the Future Flow: The WAVVE Headquarters

In 2020, with the COVID-19 pandemic as a turning point, OTT moved beyond being a simple video platform to take root as a culture in its own right. WAVVE, too, secured a new headquarters amid a rapidly expanding market, and gave thought to how it might bring its brand slogan, "Ride the Wave of Fun," to life within a physical space. In response, SPACEBASE proposed a spatial branding approach that could capture WAVVE's work environment, organizational culture, and brand identity.

An office is much like the face of a company. In a space where new people come and go every day, the atmosphere and image a visitor experiences become, in effect, their impression of the company. For an OTT company competing fiercely in the global market in particular, everything from the way its own members work to the brand image conveyed to visitors must be carefully designed. In this project, we take a look at how SPACEBASE and WAVVE worked through that process together.

The WAVVE Office: A "Wave of Fun" Captured in Space

Q. As WAVVE designed its new office space, what was the foremost problem it wanted to solve?

As the OTT market grew rapidly following COVID-19, WAVVE needed both a larger space and a new identity. The 2020 pandemic made enjoying OTT content at home a part of everyday life, and the market grew in scale around the world. WAVVE, too, expanded and relocated its headquarters to Yeouido, and so began to consider an office space that could embody its image as a global OTT company.

The impression we got on our first visit was that "the space lacked an identity that was uniquely WAVVE's." What was needed was a space that went beyond a mere work environment and clearly expressed WAVVE's own philosophy and brand. So we focused on how we could translate the slogan "Ride the Wave of Fun" into spatial terms.

Q. What was the core design concept of this project?

As an OTT platform, WAVVE wanted to go beyond a simple work environment and let people experience the identity of its brand and content within the space. To that end, we centered the design on two keywords—Orbit for the virtual (Web) and Wave for the real (Real)—and captured in the space the image of a platform where countless pieces of floating content converge into a single point of contact.

Supplementing the WAVVE-specific color and identity that had been lacking in the previous office, and allowing the brand philosophy to be felt naturally, was the core goal of this project.

Details Within the Space Speak of the Brand

Q. Which space or detail do you think best reveals the concept?

The spatial details that best express the concept are the elements that permeate the space here and there without being put on overt display. When we design a space, we avoid decorative gestures meant simply to be shown off. They can quickly grow tiresome or come across as pretentious. So at the WAVVE office, we chose an approach that softly weaves in the brand story of "the waves of the future" almost as if it were hidden. By placing various steel materials and blue-toned colors throughout, we sought to create details whose meaning is felt once you notice them.

In particular, we combined the horizontal elements of Orbit with the vertical elements of Wave to compose a three-dimensional space (3D), and brought out the connectivity of the space through three languages: Line, Curve, and color that spreads outward in gradual layers.

Color was applied differently by function, using a spectrum from white to deep navy so that functions could be distinguished without separate signage. For example, deeper colors were applied to the locker room and cafeteria, where convenience matters more than concentration, while sky-blue tones were applied to meeting rooms and the women's break room (which doubles as a nursing room), where a sense of ease is needed.

Thanks to these details, which permeate the entire space naturally without being directly on display, both occupants and visitors can feel WAVVE's brand philosophy, and we, too, were able to achieve a high level of satisfaction with the design.

Design and Communication: A Space Created Together with the Client

Q. How did communication with the client proceed?

Communication did not stop at simply exchanging documents; it proceeded by coordinating the design through real-time dialogue. Using a dedicated communication space shared by the working staff of each department and the client, we were able to quickly confirm even the finest details and reflect feedback right away.

The client wanted us to propose the broad direction and concept first, and they trusted and accepted our proposals. Thanks to that, we were able to attend to even the finest details and weave WAVVE's own identity into every corner of the space.

In fact, this approach is applied not only to the WAVVE project but in much the same way to most of the projects SPACEBASE takes on. We believe that close communication with the client is what brings the details of a design to life.

Design and Communication: A Space Created Together with the Client

Q. In this WAVVE office project, what did you focus on most when designing the town hall and the workspace?

For the town hall and the workspace, we considered a design that brings out both the spatial experience and work efficiency in keeping with each one's function and purpose. The town hall was designed not as a simple meeting space, but as a key space that showcases the brand experience.

We arranged the space so that team members could dine comfortably and hold a variety of events, and we expressed WAVVE's concept of "the waves of the future" through metal panels and a carpet pattern evocative of the sea, so that the brand identity could be conveyed naturally.

For the workspace, so that employees could focus on their work while meetings, brainstorming, and spontaneous idea-sharing could also unfold naturally, we gave top priority to work efficiency and a collaborative environment.

To this end, we designed the circulation to match the nature of each department's work and its modes of collaboration, and clearly separated the support facilities from the work facilities to heighten concentration. We also designed the space so that interaction would occur naturally through color, furniture layout, and the flow of the space.

In this way, for both spaces, through a design that considered function and experience at once, we were able to bring out both the brand value of the WAVVE office and its work efficiency.

Q. Were there any noteworthy changes after completion?

Above all, the expansion of employee amenities brought about the greatest change. A variety of new spaces were created—capsule beds, a cafeteria, phone booths, focus rooms, a women's break room, a screening room, and more—as we sought to create an environment where work, rest, and collaboration are organically connected.

The WAVVE Headquarters, Completed Through Two Rounds of Construction and Expansion

Photo of the first WAVVE completion

Photo of the second WAVVE completion

The WAVVE headquarters was not completed in a single round of construction. Just a year after the first round of construction, rapid growth made an expansion in floor area necessary, and a second expansion was carried out onto the 15th floor of the same building.

What is interesting is that WAVVE decided to work with SPACEBASE once again. This went beyond mere satisfaction with the construction of a space and led to trust in SPACEBASE's design approach, which captures a company's philosophy within a space.

Over the course of two rounds of construction, the WAVVE office gradually evolved. The biggest change was the strengthening of employee welfare and amenities, and through this, positive experiences of the space accumulated internally. We also expanded the concept of "the waves of the future," designing the 14th and 15th floors to be connected into a single story.

As a result, the office, expanded to a total of 800 pyeong, developed into an environment that connects work, rest, and collaboration even more organically, and WAVVE's own brand identity grew firmer still.

Through the WAVVE office, SPACEBASE has shown that it can go beyond simple spatial design to effectively capture a company's philosophy and vision. A trustworthy first impression, a flexible collaborative environment, and efficient circulation strengthen WAVVE's brand image, offering a positive experience to both internal members and external visitors alike.

The expansion that carried from the first round of construction into the second, in particular, shows that as WAVVE grew, SPACEBASE's design philosophy continued to earn trust. Through two rounds of construction, WAVVE's own brand identity grew firmer still, and the space became an answer that, beyond mere "visible design," lets one intuitively experience the culture and future of the company.

*Photos and design courtesy of SPACEBASE

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