Lifestyle Mirror

“It’s a constant struggle to maintain a balance between disorder and order,” says Tyler Thoreson, Gilt Groupe’s vice president of men's editorial, creative, and customer experience, of his workspace. We’re sitting at a high white table in the middle of their Park Avenue office, a space with a typical tech start-up floor plan that leaves no room for sequestered personal offices—even for top dogs like Thoreson. To his back stands a corkboard covered in swagger tiled shots of great masculine inspirations like Lewis Lapham, Michael Jordan, and Lapo Elkann.

Back at his desk, Thoreson opts for a minimalist, tidy aesthetic with a couple of personal touches—artwork by his children, a bottle or two of Scotch, a few books on men’s style, and a stack of personalized correspondence cards. “I work in such a digital medium, and I could do everything on a screen if I wanted,” he explains. “So I make sure that I have a few tactile things around just to remind myself of the physical world.”

But with all the commotion going on around him, Thoreson often escapes to one of the many conference rooms around the office; each defined by its own wallpaper, and distinguished by country. “My favorite is Chile, because I feel like it’s huddled away. It’s almost like you’re in a West Side Story movie set or something.” For an hour or so, or until his laptop battery runs out, Thoreson takes advantage of some privacy and quiet time, as well as the changeable scenery. “I like that kind of mobile aspect. Nomadic even.” he says. “I could pack up and be gone, and there would be no evidence of me.” —Sasha Levine (@sashalevine)