Brand-Building Through Architecture and Lighting: Roku’s NYC Office

When you think of brand-building, you probably envision the work of marketing and communications teams. But architects and lighting designers also play an important role. They are the ones who support a company’s image through the interiors of the space it occupies.

Roku’s new office at 5 Times Square in Manhattan is a perfect example. Designed by The Switzer Group, which partnered with Syska Hennessy’s lighting design team, the 270,000-square-foot space shares many features with Roku’s products: sleek, streamlined aesthetics, eye-catching visuals, and advanced technologies.

Kelly Capp, principal at The Switzer Group; MaryAnn Hay, principal at Syska Hennessy; and Anton Lama, senior designer at Syska, talked to Connections about the design process and how they worked together. As Anton notes, the lighting design had to align with the architect’s vision as well as with Roku’s culture and brand standards.

...the lighting design had to align with the architect’s vision as well as with Roku’s culture and brand standards.

There’s a 3D element to it, and the lighting settings can be adjusted. It’s a really interesting and dynamic piece lighting-wise.

In some areas of the new office environment, the lighting is simply integrated within the architecture to create a clean and unobtrusive solution. But in other areas, such as the reception area, entry lobbies, and a large multipurpose space, the lighting is a primary focus. For instance, visitors to reception are greeted by a donut-shaped luminous ceiling, which provides the “wow factor,” according to Kelly. Another striking element is the feature wall with 35 Roku Ultras displayed illuminated by color-changing LEDs. “There’s a 3D element to it, and the lighting settings can be adjusted,” she explains. “It’s a really interesting and dynamic piece lighting-wise.”

Part of the design strategy was to “create a hierarchy of different experiences throughout the space,” adds MaryAnn. “You know when you enter that you’re in Roku’s space, and the lighting helps to reinforce that. In the workplace areas, on the other hand, you don’t notice the lighting, and that’s intentional. But the lighting changes for the café and the open stair and the collaboration areas, offering varied areas of illuminated ambiance.” The open stair creates vertical connectivity and movement throughout the space. Lighting integrated within the stair structure reinforces this movement and activation of the open vertical volume. The stadium seating with integral lighting also provides opportunities for creative collaboration or alternate work location from standard workstations.

You know when you enter that you’re in Roku’s space, and the lighting helps to reinforce that. In the workplace areas, on the other hand, you don’t notice the lighting, and that’s intentional.

Everything was LED, so the project was energy-efficient. But we also made sure that each LED source would last at least 50,000 hours while maintaining consistency of color rendition.

The team also infused the space with New York style. Kelly reports that The Switzer Group has designed two offices for Roku. One is the Santa Monica office, which has a lighter palette, a bit of a beach influence, and a sense of Hollywood. The New York office, conversely, has a darker color palette and more metallics. Here, says Kelly, “the screens and the experience of the technology is paramount.” Roku’s location within the heart of Times Square is enjoyed throughout the interior environment and also enjoyed on their terrace located off of the large open café.

Roku’s commitment to sustainability affected the choices of installations. “Everything was LED, so the project was energy-efficient,” reports MaryAnn. “But we also made sure that each LED source would last at least 50,000 hours while maintaining consistency of color rendition.

“The Switzer Group has worked with Syska a lot, and we love to partner with them,” says Kelly. Anton, too, looks back fondly on the many “beautiful projects” the firms have collaborated on, including AMC Networks at 11 Penn Plaza in New York City as well as several Capital One and IBM offices across the U.S and St. Francis College in Brooklyn.

Feedback from Roku and its employees has been extremely positive. “They love the space,” says Kelly, who points out that the reactions confirm that “the team did a great job of capturing Roku in terms of its identify and location. The design was inspired by Times Square, along with an emphasis on screens and monitors, and that’s what employees and visitors are surrounded by.”

In MaryAnn’s view, the successful outcome stems from “a very collaborative, creative process with the design team.” She and Anton look forward to working with Kelly and The Switzer Group again. For this relationship, the future looks bright.