Salesforce Tokyo Ohana Floor

Year: 2022
Category: Commercial · Commercial Interiors (<25,000 sq ft.)
Type: Commercial
Status: Built
Firm: Mark Cavagnero Associates
Location: Tokyo, Japan

Located in the heart of Tokyo, next to the Imperial Palace and Gardens, Salesforce Tokyo is a one-of-a-kind, 22-story office tower, offering sweeping views of the city center. Following the success of other namesake towers, Mark Cavagnero Associates led the design and oversaw construction of the project during the global COVID-19 pandemic. The building features an offset core and no interior columns, resulting in a 17,680 square foot (85’ x 208’) contiguous interior space. Noteworthy spaces in the tenant improvement project include a dedicated ground floor lobby, an employee social floor, and bespoke hospitality spaces on the top two floors for the company's employees, customers, and the community at-large.

Salesforce Tokyo is uniquely positioned at the terminus of Wadakura Moat which surrounds the Imperial Palace and Gardens. The tower’s ground level lobby offers a generous double-height glass wall that opens views to the surrounding gardens and skyline, connecting the indoor spaces with the exterior. The lobby is anchored by a custom oak reception desk and planter benches that undulate along the warm, backlit wood soffit and elevator lobby entries. A striking 16’ x 16’ LED video display framed in the same oak is showcased directly in axis with the building’s main entry.

This flexible public space also includes concealed audio-visual technology to accommodate receptions and customer events. The Level 9 Social Floor is an amenity floor for employees. It features a full-service barista bar and lounge, a mailroom, IT services, an open work area, and private conference rooms of varying size. Support and back-of-house spaces are located near the elevator core, while primary program spaces are grouped together towards the center of the floor, off the façade. This frees up the perimeter of the floor for uninterrupted city views and access to natural light for all.

For flexibility, the entry area is located near the barista bar and includes a large LED video wall and integrated audio-visual technology to accommodate all-hands meetings and broadcasts. The Innovation Center on Level 21 contains the company’s cutting-edge customer meeting rooms. Designed for frequent all-day briefings, the rooms are strategically located on the perimeter of the floor to offer stunning views and ample natural light. The Innovation Center contains the company’s first ever Customer Experience Center that provides an immersive meeting environment for its customers.

It is the centerpiece of the floor set within a transparent, circular room. The space features a curved LED video wall, carefully integrated architectural lighting, concealed audio-visual equipment, operable privacy drapes, and operable glass walls to provide flexibility for an intimate or larger open learning environment. In keeping with the company’s philosophy of creating spaces that have a residential feel and utilize warm natural materials, the floor uses teak and slate-colored tile flooring throughout to distinguish gathering from circulation spaces.

Glass walls throughout the space offer uninterrupted views of the exterior, while custom teak millwork provides balance and blends well with the floor finish. The Ohana Floor, Salesforce’s signature amenity floor dedicated to hospitality for its employees, customers, and guests, is located on Level 22 offering uninterrupted views of central Tokyo and the Imperial Gardens. A unique departure from other global namesake projects, the Tokyo Ohana Floor afforded the opportunity to investigate the intersections of the company’s corporate design standards and traditional Japanese culture.

The expansive open floor accommodates up to 300 guests and contains a full-service barista bar, an exhibition kitchen, a formal dining room, a flexible meeting/presentation space, and other supporting programs. The floor’s centerpiece is a traditional Japanese house and garden, strategically placed in the heart of the space. The house and native landscape establish a connection to the local culture and the Imperial Gardens beyond. The house is a contemporary interpretation of the traditional Japanese home, divided in two zones, one for informal gatherings and the other for traditional dining.

Defining features of the home include an engawa (porch) that encircles the house, moveable glass walls, and discretely integrated architectural lighting and technology. The primary material of the home includes traditional Japanese hinoki cypress, used in some of the oldest temples in the world, while glass panels framed in hinoki serve as moveable demising walls to emulate shoji screens. These sliding glass panels allow for a variety of spatial configurations to accommodate everything from private meetings to an open stage for large performances.

The house is surrounded by a traditional Japanese garden, including native trees, low-lying vegetation, and a reflecting pool that forms a connection to the Imperial Moats. To ensure accessibility to the house for all, a gentle ramp, over the reflecting pools provides universal access to the engawa. During the day, the house is a popular place for employees and guests to sit and take in the sweeping views of the city over a cup of coffee, while at night, it is center stage for private dinners or community fund raisers.

Salesforce, with Mark Cavagnero Associates, are industry leaders in sustainability and views climate action as an important company core value. As such, this project is certified LEED Platinum and Fitwel 1 star.