Bet Your Office Isn't as Inspired as the New Zen-Like Workspace of MindBodyGreen

When MindBodyGreen decided to move into a new 10,000-square-foot office at 45 Main Street, founder Jason Wachob made sure the space put the company’s mindful ethos front and center.

Wachob started the company in 2009, after learning firsthand the value of holistic living. He’d torn two discs in his back and was told that surgery was the only way to fix them. Instead, he tried yoga. And it worked.

Wachob soon embraced meditation, organic food, and a personalized, mindful approach to healthy living. Then he tuned it into a business, ditching his career as a trader and launching MindBodyGreen.

The media company is a growing source of wellness information and inspiration. This summer, they moved into a bright open office in Dumbo — a workspace designed to underscore and enhance the company’s philosophy.

Brownstoner recently got a tour of the space from Founder Jason Wachob. And it left us mindbodygreen with envy.

“This just gives us more space,” Wachob told Brownstoner as he surveyed the office landscape. MBG’s previous office was a mere 2,300 square feet — less than a third the size of the company’s new digs. Wachob designed the office himself in collaboration with Feng Shui expert and MBG contributor Dana Claudat.

“The seating hasn’t really changed,” he observed as we looked at the cozy central desk area. “I believe that creativity and collaboration need close quarters.”

MBG currently has 28 employees. That means the office has more than 350 square feet of space per person. With 13-foot-tall ceilings, the place feels expansive.

Also expensive. Average asks for office rents in Dumbo recently reached $65 per square foot, the highest in Brooklyn. The value surge was enough to prompt developers at the nearby 10 Jay Street to ditch condo plans for office plans.

A private entrance off the building’s staircase (unlocked by app, no less) features a sign created by some local street artist friends: “In Pursuit of Magic,” it reads.

Five conference rooms ring the main open area, offering private spaces for meetings, phone calls, or a moment of retreat. Each one is named for one of MBG’s core pillars: eat, move, live, breathe and love. The tables are made of reclaimed wood.

In addition to its endless supply of juice, kombucha, coconut water and gluten-free snacks, the kitchen has a 20-seat steel bar built by local artisan Adam Lesser.

“I really wanted us to have a bar like this,” Wachob told Brownstoner. “How do you get people to really communicate? You have them break bread together.”

The other side of the main room has a tiered seating area painted with a blue streak that represents a “cleaner, greener East River” and enough open floorspace for a 30-mat yoga class.

Artist Peter Tunney created a custom mural for the south wall, printed by Brooklyn’s Flavorpaper on eco-friendly wallpaper.

A separate 2,500-square-foot room is destined to become MBG’s new television studio. The company produces very successful video series and it makes sense to keep a production area in house.

“We’ll have five of six different sets,” Wachob envisions, “a yoga set and a home set and a kitchen set. So when an expert is visiting the office, it’s easy for them to pop in an make a three-minute video.”

As our tour wrapped up, Wachob reflected on the space: “We could never have an office with eight-foot ceilings, carpet, cubicles. I believe strongly in creating a workplace thats a reflection of your ethos. This was a labor of love.”

[Photos: MindBodyGreen | Barbara Eldredge]

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