Railtown has a lot going for it these days, and not just because it houses flocks of well dressed ladies and gents who work at Aritzia’s headquarters. There is the beloved Railtown Café, a cozy JJ Bean, and, of course, the new digs of backpack heavyweight Herschel. But among all that is Endeavor: a snowboard company that set up shop in the neighbourhood before it was “cool”.
Located right on Railway Street (directly across from the aforementioned cozy JJ Bean), the workplace of this small-in-size-but-global-in-reach company is covered in warm wood panels and exposed Edison bulbs. The top floor is where the staff—marketing, design, customer service, finance—sits, in an open-concept layout and with an espresso machine at the ready. There are also communal tables at the front and back of the desk area, ideal for staff brainstorming sessions.
The bottom floor, accessed via a narrow hallway with light-coloured stairs dramatically set between black walls, is part meeting space, part coffee shop, and part store. Here, riders looking for custom boards can chat in-person with Endeavor’s staff, and even check out the adjoining research and development lab, where prototypes and bespoke pieces are made. They can also grab a coffee or a beer and browse through the selection of apparel, shoes, Airhole Facemasks (a company also operated out of Endeavor’s office and partially run by the same team), and, of course, snowboards. Gear can be purchased, or rented for a day’s adventure up to Seymour or Whistler.
It all makes for a pretty stimulating place of work, combining headquarters and lab and shop in one swish location. But of course, for this company, the real office is the mountain.
Read more from our Office Space series, and submit your own workplace for consideration by emailing [email protected].
