Award-winning creative leader with over 20 years experience working internationally with some of the world’s most recognised brands.
As Co-Founder of newly formed creative agency 'For Everyday Life', with studios in London and New York, Colin works at the intersection of creative consultancy, strategy, design and architecture with a focus on the future and 'shaping what's next'.
As Chief Creative Officer at BDG (2012-2023), he led the transformation of the WPP global real estate portfolio, shifting strategy away from short-term leasing to long-term investment in the adaptive reuse of end-of-life buildings.
In 2017 he received an unprecedented two BCO Awards for Innovation in the same year, for SKY’s Digital Centre of Excellence and the Ogilvy EMEA HQ at Sea Containers in London. Most recently, For Everyday Life were winners in the global architectural competition 'Initiative99', which targeted innovation in affordable housing.
Colin is Chair of the ‘Futures Lab’, a non-profit platform with the mission to envision and advocate for brighter and more resilient futures. He is also regularly published and a prominent speaker at industry events on the power of creativity in delivering positive change.
Selected Press & Awards
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Fashion, sports, wine, and spirits often have separate worlds, but for NBA icon and entrepreneur Carmelo Anthony, they intertwine seamlessly within his endeavors. In an industry increasingly defined by cultural diversity and multi-disciplinary creativity, Anthony has embraced his multifaceted interests to create a lifestyle brand [StayMe7o] that transcends interests and cultural boundaries.
The community lies within brands and with the help of harness-inspired brand Siegelman Stable, and founder Max Siegelman, Anthony celebrated his and business partner Asani Swann’s wine estate brand VII(N) The Seventh Estate, at an intimate dinner in New York City at the Siegelman Stable’s Holiday pop-up shop at 10 Greene Street. The night hosted influential names like BMX athlete Nigel Sylvester, marketing guru Gary Vaynerchuk, NBA stylist Chantelle Thach, and Bravo TV reality television star Jordan Emmanuel, to name a few, with the space designed by architectual firm For Everyday Life.
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Siegelman Stable has had a busy 2024 — collaborating with everyone from the New York Knicks to the American Red Cross and releasing several seasonal collections — and now the brand is set to put a bow on its most eventful year yet with a month-long pop-up. Located in New York City’s Soho neighborhood, the pop-up will feature the brand’s full Winter 2024 range, shop-exclusive releases and even restocks of hats and garments from past seasons plus a full-service coffee bar in partnership with Bluestone Lane.
Aesthetically, the pop-up uses a rich “Dock Blue” shade, one of Siegelman Stable’s signature tones. Velvet and suede are used on curtains, seating and more for a feeling of luxury that aligns with the brand’s ethos and evolves the brand’s in-person vision from its previous weekend-long pop-ups.
“This is our biggest opportunity yet to show who we are as a brand in person for a significant amount of time, at the best time of the year,” said brand founder Max Siegelman. “[Our Sprint '24 pop-up] reopened our eyes to why it is so important for an e-comm-founded brand to bring our story and clothing to life.”
The Siegelman Stable holiday pop-up will be open from Friday, November 29 through Friday, December 20. It’s located at 10 Greene St, New York, New York, 10013 — pieces will range in price from $38-$2,200 USD.
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During ICON’s official SXSW 2024 event yesterday, DOMUS EX MACHINA, ICON announced the phase I winners of Initiative 99, the global architecture competition to reimagine affordable housing that can be built for $99,000 or less. Joining ICON’s Melodie Yashar, VP of Building Design and Performance on stage to present the winners was Darlene Goins, president of the Wells Fargo Foundation who was the lead sponsor of the competition. As part of the announcement, Goins announced that the Wells Fargo Foundation is committing $500,000 in grant funding to Austin-based nonprofit Mobile Loaves & Fishes to help bring to life Initiative 99-designed homes and see multiple homes built at Community First! Village to serve the underhoused community.
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United Kingdom-based office For Everyday.Life (FEL) is one of the three selected winners for the Open Category of ICON’s Initiative 99, an open competition aiming to promote affordable home designs that can be built for under $99,000 employing ICON’s 3D printing technologies. FEL’s project, titled “Housing Salinas,” focuses on community living while applying principles of long-term sustainability, and social and environmental responsibility.
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For Everyday.Life (FE.L) presents its award winning design ‘Housing Salinas’ during London Design Week at the Material Matters Fair for the first time since it was presented at SXSW in March 2024. ‘Housing Salinas‘ is one of the winners of Initiative 99, a global architecture competition to design affordable housing for under $99,000, launched by ICON the pioneering construction technology company based in Austin, Texas.
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Design studio For Everyday Life presents its Housing Salinas project at design fair Material Matters during London Design Festival 2024.
The project, which won an Initiative 99 award, is an affordable housing project incorporating 3D-printing technology by construction technology firm Icon and mortar-based concrete CarbonX.
Designed in response to displacement caused by Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico, the houses aim to be socially and environmentally conscious, with construction costs at US$99,000 (£75,843) per home.
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Winning the award for Best Project up to 2,500m2, the Quad O2, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus is a small building with powerful solutions for sustainable, inclusive design. The judges were particularly impressed by the integration of technology, including wellbeing sensors and high-efficiency MEP systems. Despite its modest size, the project stood out to the judges for its significant reduction in energy demand and small carbon footprint, achieved through a ‘fabric first’ approach, due to the selection of materials which strengthen the building envelope. The project also incorporates elements of biophilic design and natural lighting to create an inclusive environment, catered to diversity and accessibility needs.
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BDG architecture + design completed a 39,300 square-foot WPP office in Atlanta, focusing on a post-pandemic design with warm tones, natural materials, and local sourcing for a welcoming space.
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DG unites 12 creative agencies at WPP’s Atlanta Campus
The vision of BDG architecture + design, the LEED Gold-certified fit-out is the latest addition to the Beltline, an urban renewal project transforming Atlanta’s disused railroads.
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Aug.2017
BDG architecture + design worked closely with all WPP companies in Hamburg, evaluating their requirements in order to develop the strategic architectural brief. This included utilisation and accommodation analysis, observational studies and senior level workshops, results of which defined and formed the workplace strategy for a consolidated working environment.
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Aug.2017
BDG architecture + design worked closely with all WPP companies in Hamburg, evaluating their requirements in order to develop the strategic architectural brief. This included utilisation and accommodation analysis, observational studies and senior level workshops, results of which defined and formed the workplace strategy for a consolidated working environment.
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July.2017
BDG’s design for the new Maxus office in the Alphabeta development in central London was based around choice, flexibility, change, efficiency and collaboration.
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May.2017
Sky's the limit for latest theory in office design.
A revamp allowed the UK broadcaster to redefine the way staff collaborate and work.
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Sea Containers, by BDG architecture + design, is crowned the most Innovative office in the UK 2017.
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April.2017
Judges were unanimous in awarding the Sky Digital Centre of Excellence the BCO Innovation Award. The judges said the project reused and transformed an empty retail unit, incorporating a new mezzanine floor, into a vibrant and successful workplace. There was a high degree of risk taking as the incorporation of a mezzanine was especially hard, but the judges added that this has created a highly appealing work environment, able to help attract and retain the best staff in a very competitive market.
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Mar.2017
Ogilvy gives us an insight into its stylish workplace by BDG at Sea Containers House on the South Bank in a new feature called ‘The Way we Work’.
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Jan.2017
Case study of the Maxus London HQ in the award winning Alphabeta building in central London.
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"Once a dilapidated and unloved building, the judges were impressed with the transformation of Sea Containers House into a dynamic and creative workspace for Ogilvy & Mather and their associated businesses. Innovative changes to the structure have created a series of double height spaces that connect the floors, but also take maximum advantage of the dramatic external environment of the Thames which sits immediately adjacent. Flooded with daylight, the judges highlighted how these spaces define the building and have become natural hubs for staff interaction, allowing the creativity of the business to flourish."
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SKY Digital Centre of Excellence, BCO winner in the Innovation category:
"The judges were impressed by the display of skill and creativity displayed by the winner’s whole scale transformation of a previously empty retail unit, into a vibrant and successful workplace.
The judges were unanimous in their decision to award the first North of England, North Wales and Northern Ireland Innovation trophy to the Sky Digital Centre of Excellence, Leeds." -
Dec.2016
The Times - Racontuer
The artificial intelligence revolution is well underway and soon it will not just be the simplest tasks being done routinely by machines, but some carried out by bankers, lawyers and doctors as pattern-learning programs are developed to extract meaning, take decisions and compose sentences. This Future of Work Special Report, published in The Times, examines the rise of machines in the workplace, how virtual personal assistants will change everyday lives and warns that cyber gangs could take control of the robots. The report also reveals how real-time tech translators promise to knock down language barriers.
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Oct.2016
BDG architecture + design has developed the new digital hub of Global telecom company Sky located in Leeds.
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Oct.2016
BDG architecture + design was appointed by Maxus, a global media planning and buying agency, to design their new 2,880 m² offices in the recently refurbished Alphabeta building in Worship Street London.
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Oct.2016
WRK / LDN: How and where Londoners will work in the future.
In October 2016, NLA launched WRK / LDN, a major Insight Study, exhibition and events programme examining the changing nature of work in London, and its impact on future offices and spaces of the city - featuring BDG and their innovative work at Sea Containers on the Southbank.
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Sep.2016
Sea Containers, has undergone a major refurbishment to provide a new office and hotel building, with Ogilvy and MEC the office tenants. 50% of their space has been taken from Shell + Core to enable the design team to influence the space in a more cost effective and architectural manner
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Aug.2016
Neil Usher, Workplace Director at Sky says:
“The simple, striking and vibrant space right on the waterfront is a natural fit with the building and its surroundings, and sets Sky apart as a fantastic place to work in Leeds. It’s up there with the most inspiring tech innovation spaces you’ll find anywhere right now.” -
Sea Containers, by BDG architecture + design, Office Interior of the Year
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Mix Interiors, SKY Digital Centre of Excellence by BDG architecture + design
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Aug.2016
The new landmark headquarters for Ogilvy Group UK have been completed, designed in an innovative collaborative venture between BDG and Matheson Whiteley to deliver a truly unique response to a client brief, the end result is a fresh vision for workplace architecture of the future. The 20,000 sq m workplace, located within Sea Containers, occupies a prominent location on the river Thames in London, between Tate Modern and the Oxo Tower.
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Sea Containers by BDG architecture + design
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Aug.2016
BDG architecture + design was engaged by Sky in February 2015 to create the ‘Digital Centre of Excellence’ northern hub for Sky creating a new workspace platform.
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July.2016
Sea Containers House, Office Life . . . . . but not as we know it.
Converting a landmark 1970s building into a central London HQ is one thing, but designing it to deliver radical new ways of working takes the challenge to a whole new level, as Ray Philpott dicovers.
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Mar.2016
Giant Steps for BDG
We bring you a first look at the new headquarters for Ogilvy & Mather Group UK. It has a superb vantage point overlooking the Thames and it’s a small wonder any of the staff get any work done in their new Sea Containers home, watching the boats sail past and the traffic pour over Blackfriars bridge.
Our cover star, BDG Architecture + Design’s creative director Colin Macgadie, is understandably buoyant about the project, especially as it has given the company the option to grow by 30% and still have enough space for everyone. An impressive futureproofing stat and no mistake. -
Jan.2016
BDG architecture + design has designed the new offices of global media planning company Maxus, located in London, England.
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Aug.2015
Grey moved to the Johnson Building, Hatton Garden in 2007 and over the last 8 years the business has evolved and grown significantly. Grey recognised that they needed to re-examine the way they utilised their workspace in order to continue to support the business and truly reflect its brand. The leadership team required an environment that would represent Grey as the world class agency that they are, and were very open to radical ideas to transform the space.
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Oct.2015
Grey moved to the Johnson Building, Hatton Garden in 2007 and over the last 8 years the business has evolved and grown significantly. Grey recognised that they needed to re-examine the way they utilised their workspace in order to continue to support the business and truly reflect its brand. The leadership team required an environment that would represent Grey as the world class agency that they are, and were very open to radical ideas to transform the space.
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Aug.2015
WPP, the world’s leading advertising and marketing services group, is to create a new home for its operating companies in Madrid.
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Apr.2015
There are very few pockets of our beloved Clerkenwell that remain untouched and undeveloped, but 6 Brewhouse Yard had, unbelievably, lain empty for five years. Perhaps it was the disconnected nature of the building, with its bland entrance that had resulted in it remaining untouched for so long? However, in the skilled and experienced hands of BDG architecture + design, this complex 30,000 sq ft development has been transformed into a vibrant media-hub that is home to an array of some leading creative agencies.
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Judges Comments on Brand Union by BDG architecture + design:
"Intelligent planning of the spaces and the addition of innovative features have created a welcoming atmosphere and inventive workspace at this previously redundant building. The creative design has improved access and opened up the building to maximise use of lower ground space." -
Feb. 2015
Whilst walking through many a new workplace project we often think to ourselves that our greatest challenge is going to be how we do real justice to the scheme in what is a relatively short number of words. And size really doesn’t matter with the smallest of projects also bringing innovation and interest.
However, today we’re visiting a project that is as big as it is impressive, full of innovation and interest. The new landmark headquarters for Ogilvy Group UK has been designed, in a collaborative venture between BDG and Matheson Whiteley, to deliver a truly unique response to the client brief. -
April 2014
Recently, the working environments of advertising and media companies have been synonymous with slides that link floors, meetings in caravans and Astroturf in the reception.
Such elements of design, whilst fun and attention grabbing, belie what is a very mature and established business sector, with heritage and luminaries to rival the most traditional sector of law and finance.
It is just this that we are reminded of as we enter the floors of GroupM, WPP’s consolidated media investment management operation, serving as the parent company to a number of agencies including Maxus, MEC, MediaCom, Mindshare, Catalyst and Xaxis. It is the global number one media investment management group (RECMA July, 2012). -
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March 2014
Sea Containers House on the South Bank was chosen to house all the businesses and all 1,700 employees from both London offices. Something had to give – 1,100 people are squeezed into Ogilvy East and the canteen at lunchtime resembles a scene from Oliver Twist, says CEO Paul O’Donnell.
The South Bank, he says, is a “fantastic location” for a creative business and the building is very “democratic” as all the floors are the same – so there will be no tussles with business unit heads complaining that they have been stuck in a dark corner with low ceilings.https://www.ft.com/content/2b9a77dc-a579-11e3-a7b4-00144feab7de
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June 2013
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Feb. 2013
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'Possible', shortlisted for the small to medium commercial interiors project of the year award at the MIX Interiors Awards.
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Jan.2013
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Feb. 2013
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Nov. 2012
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Issued by British Council for Offices · Apr 2012.
The BCO Scottish Judges commented on the design:
"The result is a truly inspiring office space, which is a welcome departure from traditional banking offices."
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