McCormick Spices Up Its New Headquarters In Baltimore
Before McCormick & Co. unveiled its new headquarters in Hunt Valley, Md., outside Baltimore, the spice corporation's 1,000 employees were operating across four separate campuses. After the gut renovation of an existing 350,000-square-foot facility redesigned by global firm IA Interior Architects, McCormick's global headquarters can comfortably accommodate these employees, as well as state-of-the-art amenities like a culinary education center, a company store, and an executive suite.
Topping out at seven stories tall, the new headquarters took more than four years from planning to completion. Centered around a sky-lit atrium, the updated facility is adorned with design elements inspired by McCormick's famed spices and seasonings. Wayfinding is color-coordinated on each floor, corresponding to a certain spice. Meanwhile, conference rooms and the employee dining area are printed with McCormick brand graphics, wallpapered with culinary designs, and fitted with furniture in the company's signature red hue. IA even installed custom-designed carpeting throughout the space inspired by anise, cinnamon, and vanilla.
“It is about passion for flavor and those inspirations are very subtle," explains Grzegorz Kosmal, firm principal and design director of IA's Washington, D.C., office. “We did that intentionally to leave the place for corporate communications to [inspire] fresh and current ideas while the architecture could remain timeless."
Spices are not just a design element at the new headquarters, but fundamental to education and product development work. As such, IA constructed a Culinary Education Center, which features eight stations for recipe development, a commercial demonstration kitchen, and a 50-person auditorium for meetings and tastings. An additional residential-style kitchen features a dining room and facilities for filming, photography, and post-production editing. Nearby, a black-box testing room is fitted with special lighting that helps with flavor and forecasting research.
McCormick prioritized the employee experience in its design brief to IA, calling for a Learning and Development center for professional education, a gym where fitness classes are offered regularly, and a wellness center that includes doctors offices and exam rooms. Pantries are located in the same location on each floor, and employees now have access to a technology bar, a full service cafe, and a company store.
In addition to these amenities, employees can choose from a range of workspaces including huddle rooms, sit-to-stand desks, collaboration lounges, and private rooms that can be reserved.
“Employees were the most important aspect of the design," Kosmal says. “The workplace solution centered on employee experience and support of the business while caring for their health and wellness."
While this redesign emphasizes McCormick's next generation of culinary offerings, IA did not forget the company's deep Baltimore roots. Part of this history includes a 1930s tea room that was originally located in the company's offices and later moved to the 18 Loveton Circle headquarters in the 1980s. IA reconstructed part of this tea room in the new space to “augment the modern design," Kosmal explains.
“We decided to disperse the old elements rather than create a room," he says. “[This] eclectic approach created an experience that was approachable and open to all rather than to the select few that had reason to be in the old space. The elements are integrated in the public areas of the ground floor, reminding all of the company's heritage and success."
