Jim van der Wardt: the maker behind Floor's interior

If you walk through Floor's lounge, you might not notice it right away. But the furniture, the wall cladding, the details that make the building feel like a home rather than an office, they didn't come from a catalogue. They were made. By someone who sees waste as raw material.

The maker who didn't want to be a maker

Jim van der Wardt studied HR management, worked ten years at Avanade (a joint venture between Accenture and Microsoft) and built teams at IT giants like Compaq and SAP. But something kept gnawing. "I felt trapped between the walls of the company," he says. "I was looking for more meaning."

The turning point came in 2010, when he saw an artist make a leather motorcycle saddle and realised: you ask a question, and the answer lets you do something you couldn't before. That became his method. Ask questions. Connect. Make.

Waste is raw material

What makes Jim special is his relationship with material. He prefers to work with what already exists, wood, leather, old suitcases, construction leftovers. Not out of frugality, but out of conviction. "It adds to the story," he says. "Recycled material has a history. And that history becomes visible."

For Floor, he and his team built the custom interior: furniture and wall cladding from recycled material. Each piece is unique, each piece tells where it came from. It's circular economy in its most tangible form, not as theory, but as the table you sit at.

A glimpse into the construction phase: from bare glass walls to the finished result.

Jim worked closely with Sheryl Leysner, who designed the interior concept for the 8th floor as an interior architect. Jim and his team translated her design into tangible furniture and wall finishes. Read more about Sheryl's work for Floor here.

Jim brought Sheryl Leysner's design to life together with Mauk Backx, who did crucial work as a furniture maker. Together they ensured every design detail was realised with recycled materials from Almere.

Bruggenbouwer Award 2022

In 2022, Jim won Almere's Bruggenbouwer Award. The prize for people who connect, enable and leave the city better than they found it. Jim is the founder of Makers van Almere, a network of Almere-based creative entrepreneurs, and was one of the driving forces behind Circuloco, Broedplaats De Steiger and the Steiger Festival.

What Jim does is bigger than building interiors. He builds community. He connects makers, promotes circular thinking and shows that sustainability isn't a sacrifice, but an enrichment.

Why this fits Floor

Floor is about people. About the belief that a workplace is only valuable when people want to be there. Jim's work is the physical translation of that belief. His furniture isn't just functional, it has a soul. And that's exactly what Floor wants to be.

The Loungebar: Floor's calling card

The Loungebar at the ground-floor entrance is also handcrafted by Jim, together with Mauk Backx. The wooden counter with its slatted finish, the coffee bar, the details visitors see first when they walk into Floor: all made by hand, with the same attention to material and story as the rest of the building.

The Loungebar at the entrance, handcrafted by Jim and Mauk.

Makers van Almere: makersvanalmere.nl