Simon’s Barcelona headquarters exudes pure elegance, brought to life with Dekton

Simon has transformed its former factory in Barcelona into an innovative and efficient smart building focused on employee wellbeing, called Switch. The title is a clear reference to the switch, the symbol of the brand’s production. As head of the interior design project for the new headquarters, Katty Schiebeck, together with Rubén Ortiz, co-founder of the studio, emphasised “the desire to create offices reminiscent of home – more comfortable and warmer – and to evolve the functionalism inherent in them”.

Starting with an industrial structure dominated by concrete and straight lines, the studio transformed the coldness of the building into a series of warm, free-flowing and welcoming spaces. This work encompasses everything from the choice of materials and cladding to the design of the furniture and the integration of structural elements such as the columns and staircase on the ground floor.

“From the architectural phase, open spaces were chosen, with a layout designed to encourage interaction between the different departments, making it easy and efficient for people to interact.” Katty’s design supports this idea, creating organic and welcoming environments that lend themselves to this new way of thinking about work and interaction.

When designing the project, the brand’s century-long history and strong commitment to technology and innovation inspired the idea of fusing past and future in a retro-futuristic design reminiscent of mid-century American style, infused with technological accents. Using materials such as walnut, earthy tones, natural fabrics and curved lines, the interior achieves an organic, refined and elegant atmosphere that softens the rawness of the concrete and structural rationality.

Dekton was undoubtedly one of the defining materials of the project, featuring prominently in a variety of spaces, surfaces and areas of high traffic and heavy use. In particular, Dekton Nacre takes centre stage in the kitchen diner worktops. Its cream colour ranges from fine microcement to lime plastering and is characterised by subtle details and a degraded texture that give it a high sensory value.

Meanwhile, Dekton Argentium takes pride of place in the flooring, wall cladding and bathroom countertops, as well as in the shower trays in the dressing rooms and in the cladding of the stair landing. Dekton Argentium is a neutral grey with a trowelled texture typical of lime plaster. With a visual texture that adds movement and depth to its delicate composition, it perfectly complements the industrial and brutalist aesthetic sought for the building.