After 58 years in business, ad agency, Kerker Inc., made a complete transformation of its brand to reflect its shift from a business-to-business marketing agency to a full-service consumer advertising operation. The transformation included a name change to Preston Kelly and an office relocation, taking them from a suburban office development to an edgy urban office boutique in Northeast Minneapolis. 

Shea was brought in to assess the agency's new vision and create a concept for an office space that would reflect the new dynamic of the company. The team of 40, led by principals Chris Preston and Chuck Kelly, moved from a suburban corporate office tower into a renovated historic fire barn at 222 First Ave. NE, just across the Mississippi River from downtown Minneapolis. The design intent for the new location was to express the Preston Kelly brand through a theme of "raw meets refined." The design takes advantage of the fire barn's existing wood trusses, concrete floors, exposed brick and skylights which flood the space with natural light. Key features include a unique reception desk and oversized conference table, each incorporating steel and glass. The brand is expressed in a number of distinctive ways, including a wall gallery of "iconic ideas" and a large graphic wall projection that can display anything from a client logo to a video feed. The walls themselves are an interesting combination of galvanized metal, rough pine boards and concrete blocks, and several rooms use large glass and metal sliding doors. While the majority of employees had private offices in the suburban location, a completely open office environment in the new space encourages a more collaborative environment. Contemporary, white workstations offset the raw industrial building materials, giving the space a slick, clean feel.

The 10,500 square foot office is a solid reflection of the Preston Kelly brand and allows the employees to do their best work.