Site was born in 2018. An agency by the industrial sector for the industrial sector. In the last six years, we’ve watched our clients grow—helping them build their brands, land new projects, and attract top talent.
As a result, we’ve been growing too.
Today, our team has expanded to almost 40 people. Our clients are asking us to solve bigger, more complex problems and we’ve outgrown our home office in Cloverdale. We needed a bigger space and we found one—introducing SiteHQ.
A First in Canada.
SiteHQ is the first industrial studio in Canada, built by the first specialized industrial agency in Canada. A 10,000-square-foot space, custom-built for Site and our clients by Kenorah. “We wanted a hybrid space: a production studio and office that would allow us to grow with our clients and create industry-leading work,” says Site CEO Andrew Hansen.
The new office is located on W. Railway St, which is just a stone’s throw from downtown Abbotsford and a block from Field House Brewing. The building was initially occupied by a glass company in the mid-90s and featured a large warehouse with a small showroom in the front. A decade later, it was transformed into a church that operated for almost 20 years. The first thing we noticed when we visited the space was the open concept and natural light. Its industrial history was a bonus.
“I’m looking forward to really building our culture. We created a place to gather, connect, and grow as a team…We don’t just want to be known as the best agency in the industrial sector but a true partner that brings people and ideas together. This space allows us to do that.” - Site CEO Andrew Hansen
The design has naturally inherited some unique features from its past, including the expansive wall of glass in the lobby and cafe area that once functioned as the showroom. The warehouse has been transformed from a black insular box into a light-filled open workspace and production studio with meeting rooms and a wooden riser seating area as the centrepiece. The walls and ceiling of former classrooms on the second level have been blown out to create an office space that seamlessly interconnects all floor levels.
“When Andrew first approached us, he wanted to rethink the post-pandemic workspace. As a creative company, he knew the importance of creating an attractive space where people would want to leave their work-from-home setups and come back to the office. We endeavoured to create this type of attractive space that allowed for a unique blend of space types, while also allowing for Site to be flexible and grow.” - Brent Wiebe, Form Architects
Launching Site Studio.
Aside from offering the space and amenities to house the growing Site team (100+ capacity!), the custom production studio is the central feature of the new office—a state-of-the-art space that gives us complete control over lighting and sound. This curated environment facilitates the production of a range of creative projects, including interviews, podcasts, live stream events, voice-over work, commercials, and any other scenario that requires creative problem-solving.
This in-house studio enables our production team to dream bigger than ever for our clients. Having our own curated space that is technically dialled in for our needs allows us to provide higher quality products, better concepts, and more creative control over the elements that would normally be out of our hands.
“In many respects, we’ve built this studio for Site. But in many others, we’ve built it for our clients. I’m excited to bring clients into an environment that we’ve been able to curate for their specific projects. This space enables us to drill down on collaborations across our production team and clients, with very few technical limitations to hold us back from creating eye-catching, thought-provoking work.” - Jadon Plett, Manager of Studio Production.
Some of our exciting studio features include:
- A 36’ wide, corner-to-corner infinity wall with a full lighting grid rigged above for maximum control over exposure, colour, and tone. Our high-powered, fully RGBW continuous studio lights will allow us to create unique and dynamic environments to suit any production need.
- A complete mix-and-mastering suite for the video team to dial in high-end projects with film-grade tools. Proper interior, dimmable lighting for colour grading, a mix and master station for high-end audio production, and systems that marry visual with audio.
- A pseudo-soundstage space (a blank canvas, if you will) to build, create, and dream up set designs, including faux walls to facilitate a variety of backdrop options for interviews, talking heads, and podcasts.
A Creative Hub in Abbotsford.
SiteHQ is a shared community space for the industry. A place to work, but also a space where we can facilitate events, talks, and conferences. In addition to the studio and workspace, SiteHQ is equipped with a fitness centre, a floor-to-ceiling glass lobby, a cafe and bar area, and creative breakout rooms.
One of the central design features is the risers in the open workspace area. Offering tiered seating for meetings, it also faces a drop-down cinematic screen that can be used for everything from virtual team meetings to film and campaign releases.
One of the design philosophies was establishing the risers as the nucleus of the design. Centred in the building, the risers link everything together—physically, and symbolically. The risers are where the company will come together for all-staff presentations and guest speakers, but also a space to take a break with a coworker.” - Brent Wiebe, Form Architects
As industry specialists, we know the power of infrastructure. With SiteHQ, we create a space to do more for the industrial sector, and we’re excited to do that in Abbotsford. As Andrew Hansen says, “At Site, we’re all about community. Abbotsford is a city of people who get stuff done. We make things, we produce things. We wanted to be in a place that was growing and dedicated to the industrial sector. Since the day we took possession, we’ve been welcomed by this community.”
SiteHQ opens summer 2024. See you at the launch party.
