?What If! Headquarters

Category Workspaces
Year 2013
Location New York, NY
Size 12,000 sf

Innovation company, ?What If!, was in its existing space—the historic Stuyvesant Polyclinic in Manhattan’s East Village—for several years before deciding to upgrade to better reflect the company culture.

?What If! had completed a quick renovation seven years earlier, but they had “grown up” as a company and asked Mapos for something that was more sophisticated and brand-relevant. Among the most significant features: the three-story, 12,000-sq.-ft. space doesn’t have a single cubicle or private office. Some 150 employees work in a variety of spaces that support the many different ways people work. It was designed with functionality in mind so that people could not simply work, but work better.

Photography by James Chororos.

From the moment you walk in, the energy is palpable. The centerpiece of the first floor is the lobby, where people work at vignettes of living room furniture, and the reception desk doubles as a coffee bar for work and socializing. The space is completed by a large, highly impactful chandelier custom-designed by Mapos for ?What If!

Upstairs on the second floor, café-inspired high-backed custom booths cater to intense group sessions, as well as quiet individual work.

The third floor, known as the Beehive, features oversized wood tables where people settle in for a few hours or an entire day.

Throughout the space are custom furnishings designed by Mapos, including the light fixture in the lobby as well as the painted steel light fixture on the third floor.