Sunbrella Headquarters
Sunbrella Headquarters
Burlington, NC
Mill Renovation
The project called for a new headquarters for the Sunbrella division of Glenn Raven Fabrics by re-purposing a 100-year-old mill building, the company’s first. Tsao McKown sought to preserve the historic character and beauty of the hand-molded brick and rough-hewn wooden structure, while replacing an unattractive addition from the 1960’s with a new glass and wood façade and atrium, creating a stunning vista into the heart of the former mill.
Inside the new atrium, a monumental wooden amphitheater activates the space. The deep steps, populated with Sunbrella cushions, serves as forum, meeting space, lounge, and informal showroom. On the south side of the atrium, the restored brick façade of the old mill offices frames glimpses into a communal coffee bar on the lower level and galleries above.
Deeper into the building, two indoor courtyards were created to better link the upper and lower floors and to allow sunlight to pour down from re-opened clerestory windows far above - allowing the spaces to be planted with lush gardens. Communal meeting spaces, including a 100-seat auditorium (neatly tucked under that amphitheater stairs) spill out onto the courtyards.
Exposed wooden trusses span over a landscape of offices, meeting rooms, workspaces, and communal areas. Meeting spaces range from tiny nooks - perfect for intimate face-to-face collaboration, to lounge-like seating groups – great for informal brainstorming sessions, to enclosed strategy rooms which are topped by an elevated “eagle’s nest” perched above. The entire space is bathed by natural sunlight from the atrium, expansive historic windows, and the giant clerestory.
