Australia Post’s new Support Centre in Melbourne signals a decisive shift away from the corporate tower and towards a more grounded, community-focused model of work. Designed by Hassell, the nine-level workplace in Burnley demonstrates how large organisations can embed circular design, cultural identity and everyday comfort into a single, cohesive environment.

Relocating from a conventional CBD office, the national postal service has consolidated more than 3,000 staff into a warehouse-inspired precinct that feels deliberately open and accessible. At street level, a 1,000-square-metre retail space connects the building directly to the surrounding suburb, reinforcing Australia Post’s long-standing relationship with the public rather than separating it behind a corporate threshold.

At the heart of the project is a circular design approach that goes well beyond surface gestures. More than 90 per cent of materials from the base build fit-out were reused or recycled, including over 4,500 furniture items and nearly 1,800 existing office chairs, diverting close to 30 tonnes of waste from landfill. Rather than concealing this strategy, the design embraces the logic of reuse, allowing material history and patina to become part of the workplace narrative.

Hassell’s concept draws on three familiar associations: Australia Post’s vast national network, the sense of surprise tied to receiving mail and the idea of home as a place of connection. These themes are translated into an interior that blends industrial cues with warmth. Meeting rooms reference parcels moving through a sorting centre, while planting, terraces and soft furnishings temper the warehouse language with moments of pause and comfort.

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The workplace was co-designed with Australia Post and developed with neurodiverse needs in mind, supporting a range of working styles and hybrid arrangements. Principal Dan Cox describes the project as an exercise in balancing efficiency with humanity, creating “a sense of home and community within a modern, sustainable framework.”

For Australia Post, the result is already proving effective. According to Executive General Manager Michael McNamara, attendance rates suggest the building is somewhere people actively want to be, underlining the role design plays in shaping organisational culture.

More broadly, the Support Centre offers a compelling model for future workplaces. It demonstrates how adaptive reuse, circular thinking and a strong connection to community can coexist at scale, reframing sustainability not as an add-on but as a foundational design principle.

Hassell
hassellstudio.com

Photography
Nicole England