Project Overview

An initiative from Mirvac to make a collaborative workspace supporting and growing makers and creatives. WeMake is a space for young and old to create and learn, offering classes, workshops and the facilities for people to work on DIY projects.

Maker spaces help to prepare those who need the critical 21st century skills in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). They provide hands on learning, help with critical thinking skills and even boost self-confidence.

Project Commissioner

Mirvac

 

Project Creator

McCartney Design

Team

Gary McCartney - Creative Director
Tarquin Willis - Design Director
Sinéad Kelly - Client Services Director
Anna Kerr - Senior Interior Designer

Project Brief

Here’s what Mirvac told us:
To evolve with our customers, we need to re-imagine retail spaces and create spaces that have shared value for Mirvac, progressive retail partners and our community.

This is in line with the Rhodes Waterside vision “To be ahead of the curve”
The brief? To design an engaged retail space, that allows a varied audience the opportunity to come together, co-create, innovate & educate.
Ultimately driving value to the community & influencing the path to purchase.
And last but not least make it flexible and fun!

Project Innovation/Need

This is something new in the shopping mall. An environment where, instead of shopping for goods, you make your own!

Next door to and connecting to a Jaycar store, WeMake is a general-purpose space for making, well, anything. A totally flexible setup for anything from electronics to cheesemaking, this is open for classes for people of all ages and abilities.

Design Challenge

The space is long and narrow, and we had to weave the concept around several large existing columns. In the end we left them unclad to maximise space around them and worked display shelving between the flanges. We had to make it flexible enough to accommodate many different functions and arrangements of benches. Power drops down from the ceiling, the lighting is totally flexible and there’s lots of pegboard to display what you’ve made- some of it’s even for sale!

There was also the challenge of a shared entrance area with the adjacent Jaycar store, which hosts its Makerspace events there. We had to make the entrance flexible enough so one can be open independent of the other. This area became a mini gallery of what customers have created in the space.

Sustainability

The store was built to a strict budget and as such utilises a minimum of materials. Joinery is kept to a minimum and is multipurpose. Lighting is flexible and task based, using LED for efficiency. Dimensions of joinery are modular to board sizes to minimise waste. Recycling bins are built into all joinery.

Interior Design - Co-Working & Studio Space

This award celebrates innovative and creative building interiors, with consideration given to space creation and planning, furnishings, finishes, aesthetic presentation and functionality. Consideration also given to space allocation, traffic flow, building services, lighting, fixtures, flooring, colours, furnishings and surface finishes.
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