Inside Wealthsimple’s new office, with a cozy library, sushi boats and free popsicles
What: Digital investment service Wealthsimple’s Toronto headquarters
Where: The third floor of an industrial building at Strachan and Richmond
How big: 8,640 square feet for approximately 60 people
After the company’s King and Spadina office flooded in 2014, the team worked out of five different spaces (including one Airbnb rental) over the next two years. They finally settled into a beautiful Trinity Bellwoods building last May, and staff agree it was worth the wait. Hariri Pontariri architects designed the space, which has the industrial feel of a downtown loft, but with modern accents, like a state-of-the-art kitchen. Homey touches, including a library stocked with novels, windows lined with succulents and a freezer full of complimentary popsicles, make the nine-to-five grind as pleasurable as possible.
A large communal eating area and open-concept kitchen dominates the centre of the office. Here, staff snack on sushi boats (yup, all ordered lunches are free) or hold casual meetings:
The kitchen and work spaces are divided by a library filled with books, board games (Jenga!) and some of the company’s awards. Staff are encouraged to stock the shelves with whatever they like:
The library’s rug was the only piece of furniture or decor to survive the 2014 flood:
“If we took away the Ping-Pong table, there’d be riots,” says PR manager Rachael Factor:
There’s a fridge dedicated to fun soft drinks:
And another one for slightly harder drinks:
The freezer might be one of the reasons staff complain about the “Wealthsimple 15”:
This fancy pour-over system looks more like a science experiment:
The bike rack is always well-used, and there’s even a shower for sweaty commuters:
Rows of succulents line the windows, bringing the outdoors in: