How do you incorporate technology into your design solutions to enhance guest experience?
We have found in the last few years, especially since COVID, that technology has become much more part of the whole experience. Definitely from a grab-and-go or a more fast-paced environment, we would include ordering kiosks. have digital screens, we would have digital menus, ordering on apps, all that kind of stuff. We’ve tried to seamlessly integrate it, because we’re very aware that it shouldn’t just be the main part of what you see, but people now have become so accustomed to having technology as part of their dining experience that you just have to do it in clever ways.
We definitely consider it every time. but we consider it as an element of the design, not a feature of the design. If there is a case where you have podiums, we would design a bespoke holder for it or frame for it. So, it’s not so much that you’ve put a screen up, it’s more about the beauty of the wall which also contains the information you will need.
What strategies do you use to ensure that a hotel’s or client’s brand identity is effectively communicated through its design?
That’s important because there needs to be visual cues through the space of where you are and what it is.
We would look at the overall identity, not just a logo. We’d look at brand colours. We’d look at brand identity. So, for a brand that is quite ecologically focused or nature focused, we would look at like including natural materials, so the space of the 3D environment reflects what the brand’s identity is. We would do that through the use of materials. So, if it was something that sustainability was important, you’d look at more organic forms and using more sustainable materials.
One brand that we’ve worked with recently was a fish restaurant, so the ocean is important to them. We used recycled materials throughout the space. The fabric that we used was actually made of recycled ocean plastic, things like that. Any kind of features, we would make sure that it is relevant to the brand and the little touch points. So, maybe it’s a bit of branding on the side of a table. Then smaller elements like menus, we make sure that there’s brand identity within that. If there was a key card, there would be a stamp or a symbol or something that would carry the brand through from when you enter the space. We’re always connecting elements back. It can be more subtle references as well. While you’re there, you’re experiencing it as a whole and it’s not being bombarded with it.
So the frontage, the signage, all the way through your experience in the space, there would be little touch points, be it material or text or references to the brand through the space.
Concerning sustainability and durability, what sort of criteria do you have in terms of materials for your products? Is there any sort of standard they have to meet? Or is there a different goal for each different one?
It varies from what way you would approach it. Our main focus would be longevity. We want to design spaces that are going to last for our client, so that they’re not going to have to refurb every year or two. We would look at high traffic areas to make sure the materials in that are suitable for that. There’s no point in painting a wall with a beautiful concrete effect, like Moroccan plaster, for it to get bashed within five minutes of the place being open. That wall needs to be considered differently. It’s the same with flooring. You’ve got to make sure that things are going to last. We consider that really carefully – that what we do and what we put into a space is going to reflect the brand. It needs to feel luxurious, to feel premium, but like it’s also going to work well for them and it’s going to wear well as the space is used.
You’ve got to be careful that it’s suitable for health and safety too; that the flooring is non-slip, that the kitchen is hygiene rated, so it can be a safe environment while it is beautiful and sustainable.
Is there anything in particular to keep in mind when designing spaces that adapt in terms of seasonal changes?
Lighting plays a really important part in this. We’d make sure that you had feature lighting, primary lighting, secondary lighting. So in the summer, a space could look very different to how it looks in the winter, depending on how it’s lit.
Using warm tones and using accent lighting is really effective in maintaining those changes throughout the year. Also, small touches like soft furnishings, rugs, cushions and that kind of thing can be changed out very effectively and very quickly. If a space looks one way in the winter time, it can look a different way in the in the summer time, with those kind of small little tweaks. So, it’s to create a backdrop that is beautiful enough on its own, but then when you add these small little elements through the year, it can feel like a different space.
What common misconceptions might some of your clients or customers have about your design process, and how do you address them?
The misconception is that things come about quite gradually, whereas really we design everything quite altogether. So we will start a design and we will consider everything at the beginning so that everything is intentional as you go along. You’ll always go back to your brief. You’ll always say, does this fit? Is this relevant? Is this right for the space? And then that really just guides you through the process so that at the end, everything that’s chosen and everything that is there is an intentional decision.
And when it comes to very nuanced details, a lot of clients might say at the start that we can get to that later. But, we need to consider it now because it’s part of the overall look and feel of the bigger picture. I think a lot of people think you can change things like that. We find doing 3D visuals really helps clients, because sometimes when it’s just on a plan or elevations, it can be quite hard if you don’t think three-dimensionally or you can’t think spatially. It helps people to understand the space a bit better. We don’t really come across those problems as much now that we do, that we we would produce 3D visuals for people because they can really see what the space is going to look like.
We’ll put the correct lamps in the model and the correct furnishing and the correct upholstery on things. So what they see in the 3D visual, when they look up, that’s what it looks like when it’s completed. We include as much detail as possible to take out any of the guest work.
