Officespotter

 After having visited Gyár (which means, literally: factory), we decided we will be create a best-of-officespotting list, as there are a few offices that surpass anything we’ve seen, both in their mood and aesthetics. This unusual location is the one-time Goldberger Textile Factory in Óbuda (III. district). This is another building where nobody would expect there to be offices.

We cannot give an account of Gyár and be too superlative. Yes, yes, often have we defined the places we visit like this, and this is the first time we regret that we’ve used so much verbal ammunition in the past. The pictures simply cannot fully express the mood of the place.

The company was founded by six young people five years ago, after they judged they have the energy and wit to control their own company. Their thoughts turned out to be correct, and thanks to their reliable high quality work, by now over half their clients come from abroad. They work mainly on advertisements, with occasional work on movies as well.

Dániel Gazsy, one of the co-founders, was nice enough to show us around everywhere, and among some of the place we saw were areas clients never get to see. For instance, after climbing up a tight spiral staircase, where workers can relax in an inner sanctum, away from the sound of computers.

Interestingly, nobody does work in the large central space, this area is only for the reception as well as a place to relax or make a few calls. Everyone works in offices that open up from this central lobby. There are two sound studios, all sorts of video-cutting, -editing, -processing rooms, a 3d animation area as well as a multitude of other computers that are needed to ensure the end result video material is as near to perfection as possible.

We witnessed a multitude of transportation devices in the office. Although the motorcycles resting in one area of the office aren’t used indoors, we did see a cyclist whoosh by, as well as skateboards, snakeboards, wheels to be placed on shoes, and a lot of other things with which one can avoid walking.

As Dániel walks us around, he mentions that smoking is forbidden, and the only exception thus far was Mr. Vajna, as no one dared to make him put out his cigar whenever he arrived smoking. For everyone else, the rooftop balcony will suffice, which will receive a serious overhaul in the future.

The company hosts an annual Mikulás (Santa Claus) party, which by now has become legendary in media circles. Initially the party was for employees’ families and maybe one or two clients, but these days it has grown into a circa 350 person event. Dániel tells us that because during the party the place is swarming with children, they try their best to dazzle them. This year for instance, the children witnessed Santa’s sleigh arriving on the roof by projecting the silhouette on the windows, then – accompanied by the adequate sound effects – he arrived through a window on top.

The story of the Mikulás party gives an idea of the friendly atmosphere here. Everyone was very nice to us, they readily moved anything so that the photos would look better, they were interested and smiled a lot.
Because of my amunition statement at the beginning of the article, I think it’s better not to summarize Gyár more than this, as we may be needing the positive descriptions in the future.

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