Studio Leader Rosie Oliver says both sectors are evolving post-COVID-19, generating increased demand for hybrid enabled workplaces and the strategic rebirth of key retail/mixed use assets.

Riot Games, creator of League of Legends and Valorant, is the latest Singapore workplace design win for Woods Bagot.

“The design team are incredibly excited to work with Riot as the experience of their future workplace will be fully invested and connected to the worlds they have created,” says Oliver.

Another account win with a difference is the design and fit-out of Rio Tinto’s workplace in the Mongolian capital of Ulaanbaatar – more than 5000km from Singapore. 

“We have been uncovering some fascinating research, increasing our understanding of Mongolia’s unique culture through deep and extended engagement with the business,” says Oliver.

“This will inform our process in designing a culturally sensitive and relevant experience for both employees and visitors.”

The Anglo-Australian mining company and Mongolian government co-own the huge Oyu Tolgoi copper and gold mine in the Gobi Desert.

It’s the latest of several workplace projects on which Woods Bagot has collaborated with Rio Tinto, including its Melbourne head office.

On the retail front, Woods Bagot recently worked on The Cathay, an iconic mix-use Art Deco complex gazetted as a national monument by the Singapore Government 20 years ago.

“We led the visioning and feasibility for The Cathay mall, a process of repositioning and identifying unique opportunities for the future of an iconic Singapore heritage destination.”

In other news, Swiss Re has moved into its new Woods Bagot-designed workplace – a 30,000 square metre single level fit-out in the 30-storey office building at Guoco Midtown, a sprawling 3.2-hectare integrated development.

“We have had incredibly positive feedback from Swiss Re end user team, which for us, is the most meaningful recognition of our success in delivering a project.”

The growing Woods Bagot team are loving their freshly refurbished Studio in a character-filled 1920s building on Bukit Pasoh Road.