Inside job

An envious Annabel Greene gets a sneak peek inside five of Beijing’s funkiest offices

Best for blue sky thinking Ogilvy & Mather Group

Ogilvy and Mather Group’s offices, designed by Robarts Interiors & Architecture, are trendy from the off: the expansive reception area is actually called the O-Gallery, and is a striking space with granite floors, teak panelling, a subtle water feature and a chandelier hanging from the exposed ceiling.

The company’s sleek meeting rooms, such as the ‘House of Lords’, are just off the O-Gallery, which has rotating art exhibitions. From there, it just gets more and more new media, darling: the ‘Black Box Conference Room’ has black walls and soft seats; the ‘Brainstorming Bubble’ is a white inflatable bubble with a small table and chairs. Possibly the most popular spot with staff, however, is the very cool billiards room with a full-sized table and deep brown leather sofas.

Best for office entertainment Exoweb

The offi ces of this software development company on Jintai Lu in the CBD are inspired by the Art Cafe in the 798 Art District. Managing director Bjorn Stabell took it upon himself to design the office, putting in a mezzanine floor to make the most of the high ceilings, and putting creeping vines along the open brick walls. 

Best of all, though, are the options for when workers aren’t developing software. There’s a playroom on the mezzanine with a fully stocked bar, DVD player and a Nintendo Wii with Guitar Hero and a drum kit. For more cerebral office relaxation, the ayi leads a tai chi class on the vast open terrace every afternoon.

Best for feeling hip Saatchi & Saatchi

There are few cooler mega brands than Saatchi & Saatchi, and their Beijing offi ces are among the funkiest in town. The three-storey space was designed by Antonio Ochoa-Piccardo, the chief architect of the SOHO projects and the man behind the Cantilever House at Commune by the Great Wall. 

The three floors are linked by a central spiral staircase; all the walls are curvy, and often adorned with massive portraits of trendy young types. ‘There is no single straight angle in the whole space,’ says Ochoa-Piccardo. ‘Everything is crooked, as I wanted the space to be unpredictable.’ 

Being an advertising agency, there’s the ubiquitous brainstorming room, which has a sunken Jacuzzi, except with cushions instead of water, and views across the city. There’s also a massage chair and, upstairs, a huge whitewashed warehouse space with chandeliers – ideal for entertaining clients.

Best for inspiration The Art Box

The office of exhibition curators and art enthusiasts Karen Smith and Ray Li is hidden behind a very simple and unimposing wooden door near the east gate of Jingshan Park. 

Head inside, however, and you’ll find an open-plan renovated courtyard packed with canvases, sculptures and photographs of some of China’s top contemporary artists. We particularly love Duan Jinyu’s life-size chickens, which are dotted around the place, and a wooden horse made from old ammunition boxes.

The huge rug in the office is worth a mention, too – designed by Shanghai designer Cheng Hang Feng, the 40,000RMB rug mixes corporate logos (such as the Mercedes logo, MacDonald’s arches and the Li Ning tick) with colours from the murals in the Dunhuang caves.

Best for celebrity-spotting Enlight Media

This buzzing Chinese media company, which employs nearly 400 people, has a design befitting its role as a celebrity hangout. All the walkways are lined with brightly-coloured stripy walls, and the central office area is lit by a seven-metre mushroom-shaped light.

For down time, there’s an entire floor devoted to props and costumes and an archive where you can watch over 60,000 hours of television shows. Popcorn not included.