Dumbo

Three of the Coolest Offices in Dumbo: Red Antler, Flocabulary and Small Planet Digital

View from a Red Antler conference room, 20 Jay Street We all know the story of how Dumbo transformed over the years from a center of Brooklyn industry to a mecca for artists looking for cheap real estate and then into the headquarters for creative businesses it is today. Tech startups, design firms, photographers and sound studios…

View from a Red Antler conference room at Two Trees’ 20 Jay Street

10/23/2014 8 minute 0

View from a Red Antler conference room, 20 Jay Street

Red Antler (20 Jay Street)

Red Antler is a branding consulting firm that specializes in working with startups. They recently made the move into a stunning office space on 20 Jay Street, located just a block away from the waterfront. Their conference rooms offer views of the Manhattan Bridge and the river, and they even sublet space to other companies in the large room they call “The Lodge.”

Their sleek design sensibility is on display throughout the office, where they’ve created dozens of spaces to meet, relax, or even play a quick game of ping pong.

What they do for fun: Red Antler built a bar inside the office, dubbed the “Hoof and Anchor” as a combined tribute to their own branding and the maritime nature of their adopted neighborhood. In addition to their weekly happy hours for staff, they use the space for client parties: Here are photos of Red Antler’s debut office party, which included bartenders, a disco ball, face painting, and a DJ.

And then there are the many dogs that roam Red Antler’s spacious office, including Sprout, the “Snack Supervisor” recently featured in an Agency Spotter article on office dogs.

Sprout, Red Antler’s Snack Supervisor | Claire Wallace via Agency Spotter

Next page: Flocabulary >

Flocabulary (20 Jay Street)

Flocabulary, in the same building as Red Antler, is a company that specializes in educational hip-hop — a sort of “Schoolhouse Rock” for our times. They started in San Francisco in 2004 before coming to NYC in 2005 to get closer to the rap business. According to co-founder and CEO Alex Rappaport, after three years in Manhattan, renting traditional offices with low ceilings and cubicles, they made the move to Dumbo to take advantage of the superior office space.

“We saw the view of the river,” he remembers, “and said, ‘We’ll take it.'”

Flocabulary records for an online library of educational hip-hop songs and videos for grades K-12 — over 20,000 schools participate. Employees with backgrounds in music and education develop materials in the office on topics as far-ranging as fossils, eclipses, hurricanes, and pollution — and they work with nearby sound studios and design firms in Dumbo to create the finished product.

Rappaport and the Dumbo Business Improvement District worked together to form Big Idea Week, a chance for elementary school children to collaborate with and learn from local entrepreneurs. The inaugural program debuted in May 2013 at local elementary school PS 307, with participants including Rappaport, Tina Roth Eisenberg (Tattly, Studiomates, the SwissMiss blog), Brian Lemond (Brooklyn United), Jonathan Cedar (Biolite), Matthew Burnett and Tanya Melendez (Maker’s Row), and Marco Perry (Pensa).

What they do for fun: In a program they call the Quarterdeck, Flocabulary employees take turns giving monthly presentations to their co-workers on things they’re passionate about. Subjects include everything from Brooklyn architecture to fencing — the Flocabulary CTO is an alumnus of the U.S. Olympic fencing team and trains with other Olympic hopefuls in Dumbo, a couple of blocks away.

Next page: Small Planet Digital >

Small Planet Digital (45 Main Street)

Small Planet Digital, just a few blocks away, is in the business of making apps for big entertainment clients like Disney, Paramount, and Time, Inc. They work on their custom app design and development out of 45 Main Street, a Dumbo office with views of the waterfront and skyline. Their office has continued to grow along with their company, as they took over the adjacent office as well as space across the hall.

One unusual feature of their office, left over from the previous tenants, is a wall decoration based on a design by the artist Sol Lewitt. It was apparently a test for an installation, and the Small Planet thought it was a perfect fit for their business.

CEO Gavin Fraser is effusive about their neighborhood and their landlords. “Two Trees is great,” he said. “When we need anything, we get an answer. We have clients come in from all over the country, and when we show them the views, and Brooklyn Bridge Park, everyone breaks out their phones.”

And the attraction to the neighborhood is more than aesthetic: Fraser credits the Dumbo BID for their support. “They met with us as soon as we moved in, and asked what they could do for our business. I told them that it would be helpful for visiting clients to have a map of the neighborhood, and within a couple of months, there was a map right by the train station.”

What they do for fun: Being game designers at heart, the employees of Small Planet have a passion for games. There are board games, including chess and go, and a Star Trek pinball machine in the office. In addition to game nights, they enjoy Breakfast Tuesdays and Pizza Fridays (with pizza from Il Porto, and a custom-designed, one-touch pizza app that lets all the employees know pizza has arrived). They have even hosted an after-hours murder mystery, and enjoy group outings where they hop on the nearby ferry to Greenpoint, to feast on lobster rolls at the Lobster Joint.

By now, it’s understandable if you’re experiencing some office envy. Come see what the excitement is all about! To set up your own cool office in Dumbo, contact Two Trees Commercial.