Pernod Ricard by Saguez & Partners: 2020 Best of Year Winner for Midsize Corporate Office
Although the French wine and spirits conglomerate is global—its brands include Absolut vodka, Jameson whiskey, and Havana Club rum—the company’s DNA remains closely linked to its Provençal roots. Hence Saguez & Partners’ determination to infuse the distiller’s 200,000-square-foot, eight-floor headquarters with a laid-back Mediterranean mood. French Riviera colors—sea blues, saffrons, sand tones—dominate and there are many other nods to the region, too: The abundant vegetation includes citrus trees, there are terra-cotta pots from Aubagne, and much use of wicker and rattan for furniture and finishes. The spirit is best captured by the numerous cafeterias, lounges, and barlike areas throughout the building, each encapsulating the identity of a liquor brand. The one for Havana Club features rum chests, while the sunny yellows and woven-cane wall panels in the French aperitif lounge evoke the terrace of a beach hotel. On the top floor, with gobsmacking city views, is the vast Sky Bar, its shelves laden with bottles of fake alcohol since drinking liquor is verboten in the French workplace.
Project Team: Olivier Saguez; Valérie Parenty; Pierre-Olivier Pigeot; Jean-Philippe Cordina; Marine Kempf; Maud Biancheri; Dominique Neel; Cécile Delahaie; Giacomo Volpe; Marie Anjubault; Charlotte Le Gouvello; Arnaud Laly.
> See the full list of winners and honorees from Best of Year 2020
