Like every company transitioning to new and varied ways of working, following the global shutdown to stem the spread of COVID-19, Swiss manufacturer Vitra is mulling how to return to offices amid the gradual lifting of restrictions this month. So, it has created white papers for clients ticking off practical, if somewhat predictable, hypotheses on what to expect—continued social distancing inside of buildings, more work-from-home arrangements, etc.
Yet a closer read of the reports by CEO Nora Fehlbaum also reveals surprising predictions about the furnishings that will be specified most as a result of the pandemic response—especially from a furniture company. “A good physical office environment gains importance in a time of crisis: it becomes a place of gathering and social interaction—a place that reflects corporate cultural values,” declares Nora Fehlbaum, CEO of Vitra.
Given Vitra’s legacy of collaborations with designers such as Le Corbusier and the Eameses, its post-COVID materials forecast might warrant consideration by industrial designers and specifiers. We culled the highlights here, in time for the virtual edition of the annual contract furniture conference NeoCon.