Austin-based Bazaarvoice celebrated its 10th anniversary by relocating its headquarters into a brand-new facility. Employees moved into the four-story, 137,615-square-foot facility in early December, and company officials hosted tours Feb. 18. The headquarters moved from 3900 N. Capital of Texas Hwy. to Quarry Oaks at 10901 S. Stonelake Blvd. near Braker Lane. About 515 employees work at the headquarters. “We had no idea what this building could do for morale, our image and recruiting,” CEO Gene Austin said. Bazaarvoice has the world’s largest network of active shoppers. It helps about 4,000 brands and retailers collect, moderate and display consumer-generated content, ratings, social posts, videos and Q&As about the products. Clients include major corporations such as Lowe’s and Petco and local firms such as YETI Coolers. The company used CBRE Group Inc. to help in its search of real estate and local firms Riverside Resources as developer and the lauckgroup to design the new building. Jason Schultz, Bazaarvoice’s worldwide facilities director, said in designing the new building, flexibility was key. Besides an open-floor plan, the building has breakout spaces for group interaction as well as focus rooms that accommodate one employee each. “The old building, it was more choppy with more walls, and we were on different floors with security you had to badge in and out several times a day,” Schultz said. “It made it more difficult to work together.” [g-gallery gid="135225"] Finding the right location was also key, and when looking at the ZIP codes of where employees lived, Schultz said about two-thirds lived closer to the new headquarters than other locations the company considered relocating to. “That’s 900,000-plus miles on an annual basis taken off the roads,” Schultz said of the effect on Austin traffic. “The average commute was reduced by 3 miles.” Rachael Genson, Bazaarvoice’s public relations manager for North America, said the company also reviewed its telecommuting policies to help employees who lived farther south. “We’ve really changed some of the work flexibility that we’ve had in the past to work in a way that fits employees best,” she said. The new facility also has a Whole Foods Market Cafe for employees. This is the fourth Whole Foods cafe of its type and the first that serves just one company. The cafe is located in the break room where employees can eat and also meet for bi-weekly staff meetings. Schultz said the company’s former office did not have a break room. “We really wanted to have something that is a healthy choice for employees, and the company is subsidizing part of the cost,” he said. “[The area] will increase camaraderie and employee encounters across departments.”