Project Profile: Commerce Bank - Kirkwood Branch

Commerce Bank, a longstanding client of V Three Studios, sought to create a new banking experience that focused on customer interaction and transparency for their new branch in Kirkwood, Missouri. The project involved the construction of a 3,700 square feet ground-up bank branch and drive-through ATM lanes. V Three Studios, with its expertise in handling complex technical requirements of projects with beautiful design, was selected to assist Commerce Bank in reimagining the banking experience.

The primary goal of the project was to create a new banking experience that was open and inviting, with a focus on customer interaction. The open spaces, large windows, comfortable seating, and warm finishes were designed to reinforce this new banking ideology.

One of the challenges that many banks face is converting their existing larger, outdated banks to meet the needs of modern, right-sized bank branches. For Commerce Bank, V Three Studios undertook a series of studies in 2015 to renovate the existing bank building to better accommodate a smaller, modern branch. However, it was ultimately decided that a new branch from the ground up would better serve the customer. This allowed for a more holistic approach in creating a compact building that houses all the components and requirements of a modern branch, with the addition of private banking offices and space to house the existing safe deposit boxes from the existing branch. This resulted in a new building that is a quarter of the size of the existing building.

V Three Studios worked closely with Commerce Bank, the City of Kirkwood, and adjacent developers to create a building and site design that responded to the urban context of Kirkwood and the city's plans for expanding their downtown and making the area more walkable. This included a bank that had a more open and inviting exterior design, public plaza, and a focus on landscaping that improves customer experience, including adding 40 trees to the site.

To create a compact building that housed all the components and requirements of a modern branch, each space was carefully analyzed and arranged to be as efficient as possible. V Three Studios designed custom, highly functional, and efficient furniture to complement these spaces. The new building includes many customer-focused spaces, including a comfortable seating area in the lobby, private consulting rooms, and a conference room. These spaces allow bankers many different settings to accommodate different customer interactions depending on their specific needs.

Bank branches are highly technical spaces that require close integration of data systems, banking technology, and security requirements. V Three Studios integrated these systems thoughtfully while still allowing the building design and architecture to be expressed. As this is a unique branch design for Commerce Bank, V Three Studios was able to navigate significant building redesigns, budget challenges, and changes to the site plan quickly - providing detailed renderings and plans throughout the process to gain approvals from the client and City as quickly as possible.

The new Kirkwood branch of Commerce Bank showcases V Three Studios' design capabilities in creating customer-focused spaces that are open and inviting. The project's success has further strengthened the long-standing relationship between Commerce Bank and V Three Studios, with over 35 projects ranging from corporate office spaces to new retail banking branches.

The evolving banking experience has seen a shift towards reimagining spaces to be customer-focused, with designs that accommodate much more than just transactions. Banks now need to differentiate their experience from other banks by right-sizing the building to be less imposing and more comfortable and approachable. The design supports new technology and systems, while providing more of what customers need and understanding what their expectations are when someone chooses to enter a bank branch. With this in mind, V Three Studios delivered a unique bank branch that caters to the changing banking landscape.