Thomson’s HQ

Thomson’s HQ is the new headquarters for Scotland’s oldest coffee roaster, Thomson’s Coffee. The company was founded in Glasgow in 1841 and has pioneered specialty coffee for over 175 years. Today, the company remains independently owned and operated with a focus on embracing the traditions of its founder David Thomson, while celebrating his innovative spirit by utilising cutting-edge techniques and equipment. The brief was to transform a former bank with uninviting windowless rooms and narrow corridors into an espresso bar and a flexible workspace that would create a new hub for the business, close to the nearby roastery and bakery. The design solution was to embody the values of the business and communicate them to the customers and team. Through close collaboration with the client, an overarching concept and material palette were developed which focused on the core values at the heart of Thomson’s Coffee, tradition and innovation. These were translated into a material palette of smoked oak and a Valchromat. A striking horizontal datum breaks the espresso bar in two with a crisp and contemporary base and a decorative panelled upper, reflecting the company’s beginnings and the prevalent traditional Victorian retail interiors of Glasgow. Through careful consideration of lighting below the black ceiling and within the wooden retail wall, the café provides the customers with an inviting space that echoes historic retail spaces but is undoubtedly contemporary. Contrasting the espresso bars’ rich, intimate atmosphere is a tasting room and office space. A new light shaft floods the space with natural light creating a peaceful place for the team to work or host social events such as training and tasting sessions. A more muted material palette was chosen to respond to the multi-functional nature of the space and create a brighter working environment.