Executive Summary
The Toki Row and JetBlue at The Key, two premium clubs in Barclays Center in New York City, reflect something deeper and more intentional than traditional premium spaces. Designed as part of Barclays Center’s $100 million renovation, The Toki Row — a partnership with House of Suntory — and JetBlue at The Key redefine premium offerings through fully immersive branded environments that allow luxury to tell a larger story. These new spaces are part of the largest renovation project in Barclays Center’s 12-year history and expand the arena’s premium offerings.
Through their distinct co-branded experiences that position hospitality as a narrative, each space invites fans into a world where storytelling and sponsorship converge. A good story, whether its medium is written words on a page or the curation of a feeling in a space, always requires proper context. The stories of JetBlue and House of Suntory work at Barclays because their brand identities resonate with the arena’s fan base and Brooklyn’s culture.
The Toki Row draws from Brooklyn’s historic brownstone architecture and features intimate materials, curated art, theater-style seating, a cocktail bar serving Suntory Toki whisky and a dessert station. JetBlue at The Key offers a dynamic and interactive experience with repurposed Nets court tables, tap beer service and a 44-foot media wall.
Together, these spaces represent a new model of premium hospitality rooted in brand storytelling and impossible to replicate anywhere else.
Submitting Organization: Populous
Photo Credits: Tom Harris
Detailed Nomination
The Toki Row and JetBlue at The Key, two premium clubs in Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, reflect something deeper and more intentional than traditional premium spaces. Designed as part of Barclays Center’s $100 million renovation, The Toki Row, a partnership with House of Suntory, and JetBlue at The Key redefine premium offerings through fully immersive branded environments that allow luxury to tell a larger story. These new spaces add to the arena’s growing premium offerings and are part of the largest renovation project in Barclays Center’s 12-year history.
Through their distinct, co-branded experiences that position hospitality as a narrative, each space invites fans into a world where storytelling and sponsorship converge.
A good story, whether its medium is written words on a page or the curation of a feeling in a space, always requires proper context. The stories of JetBlue and House of Suntory work in Barclays Center because their brand identities resonate with Barclays’ fan base and Brooklyn’s culture.
Through extensive research and experiential storytelling, we led the integration of each brand’s ethos into the physical and emotional journey of the fan.
The Toki Row, designed with Brooklyn’s historic brownstone architecture in mind, accommodates 192 members in an intimate setting featuring herringbone floors, velvet furnishings and custom wainscot paneling. Artwork by Brooklyn-based artist Adam Pendelton decorates the club, while a full-service bar serves cocktails featuring Suntory Toki whisky and other House of Suntory spirits. Members enjoy reserved, theater-style seating, curated wine selections and a dessert station with fresh gelato and complimentary sweets.
JetBlue at The Key offers an interactive experience with communal tables repurposed from past Brooklyn Nets courts, the arena’s only tap beer service and a 44-foot media wall that can display up to five screens or one unified image. The club provides reserved suite seating for 252 guests and features an all-inclusive dining experience with food stations serving sliders, mini brats and a BBQ table.
By grounding ourselves in the story of Barclays Center, its fans and its setting, we created co-branded spaces that deliver far more value than naming rights — they enhance the human experience and create deeper fan loyalty and sponsor engagement. As experiences become increasingly accessible, available at our fingertips and on our screens, premium hospitality has to find compelling new ways to draw people together. Looking at Barclays Center, JetBlue and House of Suntory as co-authors of a guest experience, we created a model for premium that feels both relevant and entirely unique to its place.
Good design is good storytelling. Like the best stories, the ones we return to time and again, well-designed spaces invite us back, again and again. More than a renovation, The Toki Row and JetBlue at The Key redefine what premium can be. Their success demonstrates how design has the ability to turn partnerships into places imparted with meaning. The Toki Row and JetBlue at The Key are places fans want to return to again and again, not just for what they offer, but for how they make us feel.
