Architecture and design firm West of West has unveiled its complete transformation of Puma Studios LA, a dynamic new headquarters for the global sports brand located in Los Angeles. The 10,000-square-foot space serves as a hybrid environment combining offices, showrooms, design studios, hospitality areas, and flexible event venues. At the heart of the project stands a sculptural all-wood staircase that spirals upward through the center of the studio, embodying the design's core concept of an atelier where creation and display happen simultaneously. The firm drew inspiration from traditional workshops, creating what they describe as "a place of instruction, experimentation, and production, where unfinished work, raw materials, and final pieces coexist in the same environment."

The material palette establishes a warm, minimalist foundation throughout the facility, featuring polished concrete flooring, translucent glass panels, natural wood finishes, and matte aluminum details. This consistent base allows individual zones to develop their own character while maintaining visual cohesion. The central staircase, crafted entirely from wood, serves as both a functional circulation element and an artistic centerpiece, winding gracefully between floors and drawing natural light deep into the interior. Adjacent to this feature, a dedicated library space showcases floor-to-ceiling wood shelving paired with a deep green velvet carpet and custom built-in seating, creating an intimate retreat for research and contemplation within the otherwise open-plan environment.

The showroom area exemplifies the studio's flexible philosophy through its innovative use of mirrored panels and translucent screens that can be reconfigured to frame products differently or open up for larger gatherings. This adaptability enables Puma to host everything from intimate client presentations to large-scale launch events within the same footprint. In the social hub, where employees gather daily for collaboration and informal meetings, natural oak casework and aluminum counters foster a welcoming, residential atmosphere that encourages spontaneous interaction. The design intentionally blurs boundaries between work and social spaces, reflecting contemporary thinking about employee wellbeing and creative productivity.

A distinctly different mood defines the boardroom, where West of West employed a darker, more sophisticated approach featuring suede-effect plaster walls, sheer curtains, and a striking cast-resin conference table. This formal environment provides a contrast to the workshop aesthetic elsewhere, offering executives and high-level clients a space that feels both refined and grounded. The material choices here emphasize texture and subtle luxury without sacrificing the overall industrial-creative language of the project. Lighting design plays a crucial role throughout, with the iconic Puma logo dramatically illuminated against curtains in a dedicated lounge area, reinforcing brand identity in an architectural rather than purely graphic manner.

Perhaps the most technically impressive component is Studio48, a fully equipped design workshop that mirrors Puma's similar facilities in Herzogenaurach, Germany, and Boston, Massachusetts. This maker space includes a comprehensive footwear and apparel material library, large-format and desktop printing capabilities, professional-grade sewing machines, and movable pin-up walls that double as photography backdrops. Behind the scenes, a humidity-controlled room houses advanced manufacturing equipment including 3D printers, a direct-to-garment (DTG) printer, laser cutter, and a fully ventilated spray booth for prototyping. This integration of production capabilities within the main office allows designers to move seamlessly from concept to prototype without leaving the building, dramatically accelerating the creative process.

Puma describes the completed studio as "part workshop, part theatre, part social commons"—a space where making, displaying, and hosting overlap to create an environment that is dynamic, porous, and culturally engaged. This approach represents a new model for 21st-century workplaces, particularly in creative industries, where the traditional separation between departments dissolves in favor of fluid, multi-functional zones. Situated in Los Angeles, a city recognized as a global capital of creativity, the studio serves not only as a home base for Puma's West Coast teams but also as a cultural platform for engaging with the broader creative community. West of West, known for previous projects including a proposed vertical co-living neighborhood in San Francisco and a concrete office complex in Austin, continues to push boundaries in workplace design through this project that anticipates the future of work while celebrating the craft of making. Photography by Yoshihiro Makino captures the interplay of materials and light throughout the space.