Interior design conveys corporate image

When Fox Grape Family Dentistry expanded its 3250 E. Battlefield Road office in 2007, the company hired A. Deckard Interiors to orchestrate the look of the new space.

The dentistry office, which opened in 1993 in Fox Grape Plaza, nearly doubled its square footage to handle a growing patient roster and facilitate new procedures, but according to interior designer Andrea Deckard, the look of the office interior wasn't keeping up with the practice's growth.

"It hadn't been touched in years," Deckard said. "They also were targeting some more cosmetic dentistry, so they wanted to bring (the space) up to a more upscale and sophisticated feeling."

Dr. Howard Shayne, co-owner of the dental clinic, said the primary goal of the $350,000 remodeling project - which included tearing down the wall connecting the clinic to the neighboring space and expanding by 1,500 square feet - was to update the practice's interior to better reflect the maturing company.

"We didn't want it to be cold and sterile, but yet it needed to have a modern, crisp look," he said. "We consider ourselves a high-tech practice ... and we wanted our environment to reflect that feeling."

While a company's employees and business model are crucial to its success, interior designers say that, in many industries, the look of the business can be just as important in conveying the right message.

Sending the right message

Springfield First Community Bank has the advantage of creating its image from scratch.

The startup bank, which opened in October 2008 in a temporary trailer at 2006 S. Glenstone Ave., is emphasizing its community roots - and that emphasis will be reinforced in the décor of the bank's permanent 16,000-square-foot, $3.5 million headquarters, slated to open this fall.

While the bank's new home will feature the usual banking amenities - multiple teller windows, conference rooms and offices - the building also will feature a decidedly café-like feel, according to designer Terri West of Interior Planning Consultants.

"It will be a small café in the sense that when they meet with prospective or current customers, it will be at a seating area that has a café feel to it," West said. "It makes it feel like it's more on a personal level, as opposed to sitting across a desk."

The community theme also extends to the artwork for the planned waiting areas, according to bank Executive Vice President Jan Baumgartner.

"Our Web site was built by local graphic artist (Justadhumor Inc.), and we use customers in our ads because that's really important to us," Baumgartner said. "We've also talked to local photographers to get local artwork in the bank. It reflects the kind of image we want to convey - we're a community bank, and (in) everything we do, we want to think about the community."

Designer Deckard said a company's visual presentation can make an immediate impression that acts as a nonverbal advertisement with customers - and she said customers can tell when the visuals don't match the company's mission.

"If a company is going to market itself as having high-tech or cutting-edge technology, or they're trying to capture the younger market by being modern, but their interiors are 20 or 30 years old, people recognize the discrepancy," Deckard said. She added that the reverse also is true: Companies marketing themselves toward older customers are better off steering clear of designs that are too modern and incongruous with their audience's comfort zone.

Risks of reinvention

While startups face the issue of establishing a new a visual brand, existing companies that want to update or modernize interior design face their own set of problems.

Designer West said companies often decide it's time for a new look when a new generation of leadership enters the picture.

"Businesses are just doing things differently these days," West said. "The younger generation is more adept with computers, so when they go into a space, they want to be able to use (that technology)."

The problem, however, is that changing too much can be disconcerting to existing customers who have grown accustomed to a certain look and feel. That was part of the challenge Deckard faced with Fox Grape; the owners wanted to update the look but still pay homage to the practice's roots and stay true to the purple color palette aimed at complementing the Fox Grape name.

Deckard said she accomplished that goal by sticking with an eggplant color scheme and removing shades of teal and burgundy that dated the space; she also updated the finishes with accents of glass and metal.

"We didn't do anything so wild or different that it would alienate customers. It was just an updated version," she said. "They haven't lost their old business, but they are bringing in new business based on the fact that they can now position themselves differently in the market."

Dr. Shayne said that while a few customers have expressed mild complaints about the company's higher check-in counter - a necessity due to federal medical information privacy rules - the vast majority of company clients are pleased.

"Probably 98 percent of the feedback we get has been extremely positive," he said.

The ability to keep the customer comfortable, West said, is why major companies such as Steak 'n Shake and Starbucks have been successful around the world - customers know exactly what they're going to get.

"They have been very successful at recreating the feel of their company all over the world, and a lot of that is due to the look and design of their stores," West said.