Bastide Ikigai,
Aix-en-Provence

An inspiring Provençal coworking area that makes a change from regular office settings!

Fully-equipped work areas open to the outdoors

On the outskirts of Aix-en-Provence, nestled in luxuriant surroundings, Bastide IKIGAI is a perfect place to work for all those in search of an alternative office experience. Catherine Gignoux’s project began in 2021 with the rehabilitation, renovation and extension of this 18th century mansion, to create a co-working area like no other.

Every area of this large, charming building is designed for modular use with a view of outdoors.

“From the very start of my project, I knew I wanted versatile furniture that would encourage discussions and that could be used both indoors and out. I have had Fermob furniture at home for over thirty years,” Catherine remarked. “When I found out that the brand had a range for professionals too, I contacted their teams. I loved the idea of mixed materials, wood with colourful metal, mixed designs, mixed usages.”

Catherine and her team can thus adapt to each customer, their desires and projects, number of people, etc. “We can propose a range of different locations and working positions throughout the day.” The layouts change almost every day. The furniture here is folded out, extended, separated, mixed up... Any combination is possible to personalise the different areas. “We worked a lot on this aspect of the project and having the Fermob consultant come here helped a lot.”

From co-working areas to conference rooms, seminar rooms to private offices, the shared kitchen to the community areas, there is a refreshing breath of freedom throughout Bastide Ikigai.

The establishment provides a wide range of Fermob collections for its guests: different heights, different sizes, usages and colours. The breadth of the brand’s range meant that each room could be equipped with suitable furniture, without compromising the overall harmony. The lightweight, easy to handle furniture can be set up inside or out, and mixed and matched.

While the SIXTIES chairs, greatly appreciated for informal team-building exercises, are generally associated with low tables and benches from the same collection, the STUDIE chairs work well with CARACTERE tables and LUXEMBOURG seats can be arranged around BISTRO tables, or vice versa. The Studie and Bistro seats are easy to move around and are therefore also used for conference formats, introducing a certain originality to these large get-togethers.

By the pool or in front of the veranda at reception, the ADADESK rocking side desks, reminiscent of childhood, are an immediate attraction. “Everyone wants to try them!” confided Catherine.

On the rooftop, brainstorm sessions on high BISTRO furniture overlook the surrounding natural environment, classified as a protected area. In summer, shaded by the chestnut tree, workshops and lunch breaks are all the more entertaining with Sixties seats that appear to have migrated from the team-building room…

“I also opted for accessories in different colours for extra fun: Alfred side table, ACCROCHE CŒURS coat stand, ACROBATE pegs... In terms of colour, I was looking for purity (Cotton White), the colour of the sky (Deep Blue) and ground (Red Ochre). There is something very organic about the Fermob colour chart.”

Some rooms have solid wood parquet flooring, so the glide pads on most collections protect the flooring and enable the furniture to be moved around without disturbing the people working in nearby rooms.

As for lighting, the BALAD H38 lamp is perfect for the quintessentially nomad spirit that reigns here. It is often found decorating the bar or providing extra light on winter work days.

Aside from its name, which itself is an invitation to travel and introspection, Bastide Ikigaï certainly has a certain je ne sais quoi that other offices don’t!