Press Release
Enjoei Headquarter Office by Gema Arquitetura Receives the Silver A' Design Award in Interior Space and Exhibition Design
The international grand jury of the 2024 - 2025 A' Design Award & Competition recognizes Gema Arquitetura for interior space and exhibition design
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 21, 2025 /DesignNewswire/ A' Design Award & Competition has announced that Enjoei Headquarter Office by Gema Arquitetura, designed for Enjoei, has been granted the Silver A' Design Award in the Interior Space and Exhibition Design category. The result belongs to the 2024 - 2025 A' Design Award & Competition and was determined through blind peer review by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members, who assessed anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.
What the Silver A' Design Award Means
The Silver A' Design Award celebrates top-tier designs that embody excellence and innovation. This award acknowledges creations that are not only aesthetically pleasing but also highly functional, reflecting the designer's deep understanding and skill. Silver A' Design Award recipients are recognized for their contribution to raising industry standards and advancing the practice of design. Their work often incorporates original innovations and elicits a strong emotional response, making a notable impact on the improvement of everyday life.
About Enjoei Headquarter Office
Enjoei Headquarter is an office interior located in the Copan building in Sao Paulo, designed by Oscar Niemeyer in the 1950s. The floor of 2,100 square metres was requalified for about 230 people, with integrated workspaces and numerous meeting rooms. The existing subfloor was kept as the final flooring and the original finishes were restored, which reduced waste. Recycled fabrics, exclusive carpet designs and curated furniture were used. The meeting rooms apply low cost solutions that improve acoustics. White surfaces create a calm and futuristic atmosphere.
About Gema Arquitetura
Gema is an architecture studio that operates across various scales and typologies, developing residential, commercial and institutional projects. It engages with both contemporary architecture and cultural heritage through a deep understanding of the city and the social and geographical context in which each project is situated. Creative processes, almost artistic, stem from a repertoire that includes sensory experiences, literature, landscaping, fashion, technology, arts and behavioral trends rooted in Brazilian identity. Projects are tailor-made, carefully crafted for each client and each specific location.
Award Record
With this recognition, Gema Arquitetura is a winner of 1 A' Design Award.
About the A' Interior Space, Retail and Exhibition Design Award
The A' Interior Design Award is an international interior design competition recognizing good interior designs by interior designers and architects worldwide. It is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to interior designers, interior architects, architects and decorators from all countries. Typical entries include residential interiors, restaurants, hotels, offices, galleries and retail stores. The awarded interior designs are published at https://designers.org/design-category/interior
About A' Design Award & Competition
Organized annually since 2008, A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The philanthropic mission of the A' Design Award is to advance society through good design, by recognizing and promoting superior products, projects and services that benefit society, and by creating a global awareness and appreciation for good design practices and principles. Nominations are peer reviewed and evaluated anonymously by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members against predetermined criteria such as functionality, ergonomics, engineering, presentation, innovation, usability, sustainability and technology, with score normalization applied to remove biases. Awards are conferred at Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron levels. Eligible laureates receive the A' Design Prize, which includes the award trophy, the certificate of design excellence, the hardcover yearbook, a lifetime license to use the A' Design Award winner logo, exhibition of awarded works, an invitation to the gala night and award ceremony in Italy, inclusion in the World Design Rankings and Designer Rankings, and public relations and publicity services. Registration, uploading a work and receiving a preliminary score are free of charge, and Professional and Digital Edition laureates are not contractually obliged to pay further fees to claim the A' Design Prize. More information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com
Press Resources
- Winner Page: https://designers.org/169158
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/169158
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!169158
- Laureate Profile: https://designers.org/d/365098
- Further Information from the Laureate: https://gemaarquitetura.com/
Media Contact
Giulia Ferrari, Press Office
Designers.Org
Via Leone Leoni 32, 22100 Como, Italy
press@designers.org
+39 031 4491953
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Fact Sheet
The Work
- Project
- Enjoei Headquarter Office
- Function
- Office
- Category
- Interior Space and Exhibition Design
- Discipline
- Spatial Design
- Industry
- Architecture and Packaging & Retail
- Colors
- Gray, Rosy Brown, Tan, Dim Gray and Light Gray
- Images
- 5
- Client
- Enjoei
The Recognition
- Laureate
- Gema Arquitetura
- Country
- Brazil
- Recognition
- Silver A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2024 - 2025
- Design ID
- #169158
Credits
- Team
- Nara Grossi, Joseana Costa, Giuliana Mora, Bárbara Olyntho and Ana Koga
- Image Credits
- Photographer Joao Paulo Prado; Photographer Joao Paulo Prado Video: Videomaker Felipe Faria
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- Researching and understanding Copan's history, envisioning Sao Paulo’s downtown as a force for a more diverse and democratic future, while recognizing Enjoei’s responsibility and daring step in relocating to the historic city center were key insights that shaped the project concept. Layers of reality, desire, poetry, and urban identity were intertwined with the extensive program of the new office, while maintaining spontaneity in the design and respecting the importance of this space in Oscar Niemeyer's work.
- Inspiration
- In the heart of Sao Paulo, the iconic Copan building, designed by Oscar Niemeyer in the 1950s, hosts the headquarters of Enjoei, Brazil's largest second hand ecommerce platform. The 2,100m2 project embraces principles of sustainability, innovation, and space requalification, while enhancing the company's interaction with the city, towards a more diverse and democratic future. The design follows an occupation logic that seeks physical and emotional impact by understanding scales and fluidity.
- Research
- The project reflects deep immersion in research about the history of Copan building and Niemeyer’s vision for this space. Originally conceived by the architect as an elevated garden, a continuation of the street without lateral enclosures, with benches, plants and even a florist. The strong connection with the street and the city, the rhythm of the large pillars that brings depth and movement to spatial perception, the vibrancy of the corner curve as a meeting point and the terrace as a permeable area for views and breathing: all these elements shaped the investigation into design languages for the new occupation.
- Challenge
- The challenge was to design a peaceful, quiet and innovative space that respected Oscar Niemeyer’s established modern architecture. Additionally, it aimed to demonstrate that revitalizing obsolete buildings and reoccupying Sao Paulo’s historic center were viable through responsible and contemporary architecture. Enjoei meets the architectural quality, iconic solidity and diversity of Copan. These characteristics blend and strengthen each other, with a vision of the city and the future.
- Realization and Technology
- Recycled fabrics were used, and the building’s original finishes were restored. Exclusive designs for the carpets were created, and unique furniture was curated. The aim was to generate less waste by avoiding stripping the central pillars and using the existing subfloor as the final flooring to reduce the need for new coverings. The meeting rooms were designed with low cost solutions that also provide better acoustics, avoiding large glass panels.
- Operation and Interaction
- The existing terrace was thought as a street for the porpose of the project and it is this what leads to the main entrance to the office, at the central point and the smallest radius of the curved layout. A secondary access is located to the right of the floor plan, near the elevator. The idea here was to create an internal street and provide a sense of tension upon entering the space. In this access, perception unfolds in movement, rhythmically guided by the large internal pillars, with the space gradually revealing itself. Between these two flows, the ecosystem of employees takes place, near natural light and directly connected to these streets.
- Project Duration and Location
- The project started in November 2023 and was completed in February 2024 in Sao Paulo. The construction began in February 2024 and was finished in July 2024 in Sao Paulo.
- Specifications
- Area of 2,100m2, focusing in requalification of a floor from the 1950s. Briefing: acoustic quality, numerous meeting rooms, and integrated workspaces for approximately 230 people, within a predetermined budget. The predominance of white in the design creates the desired effect: a floating and futurístic atmosphere.
- Keywords
- Niemeyer, Requalification, Heritage, Sustainability, Reoccupation, City Center
