COLOPL — Tokyo Midtown: an office designed to make people want to come in

Concept

Evidence, not slogans

The move was planned around infection control. Instead of a slogan, COLOPL worked with data — health ministry and CDC guidance and air-conditioning researchers — and used linoleum, a natural material with proven anti-viral, anti-bacterial and deodorising effects, across floors and furniture. The ceiling carries far more exhaust ducts than a normal office, raising extraction by about 20%.

The other goal was contact between people. One floor of about 1,100 tsubo is kept open with nothing to block the view, so you can see who is in and the air moves freely. The design concept is monotone: the founder was an engineer, and function beats looking cool — from desk sizes to socket positions, there is a reason for everything.

01 · Reception

A bear from the first game

The sixth-floor entrance is designed after Colony na Seikatsu, the browser game the company started with, and the corporate bear stands as the accent in an otherwise plain space. Thirteen visitor rooms are named after items from that game, each hung with artwork by the company’s own young designers.

02 · Workspace

Islands by project, not by job

Desks are fixed, and seats are grouped into islands by project, so planners, engineers, designers and sound creators sit together. Desks were made deeper for distance, and only the tops were replaced to cut waste. More than 30 standing desks are spread over the two floors, and a soundproof room protects sound creators from hours in headphones. Cables, chargers and monitors can be borrowed freely.

03 · Meetings

A 1on1 booth you can unmask in

The 1on1 booths have a glass divider down the middle and an intercom: the conversation stays inside, and both people can take their masks off. There are booths for online meetings, family-restaurant-style benches, sofa seats and many standing spots for a quick question without booking a room.

04 · Colopark

Bananas, a vending machine and 3,000 books

Colopark on the fifth floor is where the perks sit. Free bananas, chosen because you can eat them without touching the fruit, have gone through some 105,000 pieces in about three years. There is a vending machine from the beef-bowl chain Matsuya and a balanced bento service. Kuma Library holds more than 3,000 books, from technical titles to comics, lendable online, and a game corner runs from the newest consoles to retro machines.

05 · Welfare

Kuma SPA

At Kuma SPA, a licensed in-house therapist gives free massages during working hours, once a week per person. Every floor has free coffee, tea and sparkling water from cup machines and water servers.

06 · How they work

Points to spend, and a walking festival

A cafeteria plan gives monthly points that people spend as they like — learning, books and AI tools, meals with colleagues, or physical and mental care — with no advance application. A health team runs the programme, and the company has been named a “Health & Productivity Management Outstanding Organization” five years running since 2021. Twice a year a month-long walking event, Aru-fes, has executives joining in too.