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Lydian, raising the bar in coffee
On this mild November morning, in the light of the autumn sun, the final touches are being put to the firm’s brand-new kitchen. At the centre of Lydian's large premises, situated on the 1st floor of the Tour & Taxis complex, this long, rectangular living space, which is specially designed by an architectural firm, incorporates a conversation corner complete with armchairs, a large bar table in the middle of the room, and at the far end a wooden frame surrounding the Nespresso machine.
« It's such an important meeting place, where we can get together to discuss everything from business matters to our holiday plans.
It really does help to foster a sense of team spirit and provides the social aspect that everyone needs now we’re out of lockdown. »
Founded in 2001, Lydian now has offices in Brussels, Antwerp, and Hasselt and is largely characterised by its philosophy, which is directly inspired by the Anglo-Saxon tradition.
« Our approach is based on practical professional advice », stresses Koen Poncelet.
« We don't offer academic opinions; we prefer the ‘short and to the point’ approach to enable us to respond clearly and efficiently to our clients’ expectations and help them to move forward. »
An average of 80 people a day pass through the firm’s Brussels offices, and according to Management Assistant Brigitte Thonus, their lives have changed radically since the Nespresso machine was installed: « This is a huge improvement on our previous machine. The coffee is much better and we don’t have to queue for it now. »
« You can even make four coffees at the same time so there’s no waiting. »
Sipping on a latte macchiato, her colleague Counsel Florence Colpaert agrees:
« I'm not much of a black coffee drinker but I do enjoy the milk-based recipes. They’re really easy to make and always turn out beautifully. »
This is a sentiment shared by Louise Berrier and Félice Roes, both working as Associates in the Corporate & Finance department. Louise, a die-hard cappuccino fan, confesses to making three or four trips to the coffee corner every day, while Félice, who’s somewhat partial to a latte macchiato in the morning, prefers to switch to Espresso Origin Brazil over the course of the day.
What better representation could there be of the diversity of the conversations that take place around the coffee machine every day?
« The architectural firm essentially designed the coffee corner around the Nespresso machine.
They’ve even provided extra fridges for storing the milk - we get through around five litres a day. Put simply, it really has become a key meeting place for the whole company. »
