Design Centre Stories

Design Destination London

Cementing transatlantic ties with a visit from 200+ US designers

US designers looking at archive images in the GP & J Baker showroom at the Design Centre

The Design Centre recently played host to 200+ US designers for a day, part of Design Destination London, an initiative spearheaded by The Wells Companies, which distributes many top British design brands in North America.

The tailored trip included talks with top designers, drop-in sessions to participating showrooms and a fabulous private supper – all  highlighting a desire among US designers to engage, be inspired by and seek deeper connections with the UK design industry.

A talk at Design Centre, Chelsea Harbour with Steele Marcoux, Alidad, Flora Soames and Philip Hooper

For its main-stage talk on the day, the Design Centre brought together three highly compelling names – Alidad, Flora Soames and Philip Hooper of Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler. The talk, The Art of Home, reflected on some of the universals of a great interior, regardless of its location. Moderator Steele Marcoux, editor in chief of Veranda, started off by asking what a “timeless” interior meant to the designers – and even whether the word was so overused as to have lost its meaning. “It is an overused word, but it’s an apt word for the world we live in,” said Soames. “For me, something standing the test of time goes hand in hand with craftsmanship.”

For Hooper and Alidad, sensitively responding to a building and its location is the first step. “You’ve got to understand the history of a house and not work against it,” said Alidad. “I’ve got to give somewhere a history. That’s my passion in life.” The designer loves to create homes that look like they have evolved over centuries, encouraging his clients to think how their grandparents or great-grandparents would have decorated: what would subsequent generations have added, and taken away, to create what’s here today?

Hooper added: “It’s about understanding the spirit of the place – whether that’s an uber modern ski chalet or an 18th-century house. But it’s also about not imposing your taste – I encourage people to be brave enough to say what they want. The elements of their personality, reacting with what you’re doing, creates the magic. The uniqueness is what makes things timeless.”

Showrooms also hosted their own talks on the day. At Hector Finch, Hector and Emma Finch reflected on how to create interiors with soul, and there was a first look at a new film commissioned by the brand, introducing some of the artisan makers and traditional techniques to create the collection. Over at GP & J Baker, managing director and creative director Ann Grafton was in conversion with Country & Town House‘s Carole Annett alongside Sean Symington, a Canadian native who now works in both Bath and Bristol. The focus was on GP & J Baker’s incredible archive, and how it provides a stream of inspiration for new collections: Symington waxed lyrical about the ‘hero’ fabrics that often provide the basis for en entire design scheme, including ‘Chifu’, ‘Hydrangea Bird’ and ‘Magnolia’, all chinoiserie-inspired designs first drawn in the 1910s. Grafton took us back even further in time with a first look at GP & J Baker’s latest collaboration with Historic Royal Palaces: one design came from a late-16th-century fragment that Historic Royal Palaces brought to the studio, before it was discovered that GP & J Baker happened to have the original drawing in the archive already – a coincidence too sweet not to act upon.

A panel discussion in the de Le Cuona showroom at the Design Centre in London, with Bernie de le Cuona, Katharine Pooley, Gianluca Longo and Claire German

A powerhouse panel of names were in the de Le Cuona showroom to talk about how to get published in the British press. Bernie de Le Cuona, interior designer Katharine Pooley and The World of Interiors‘ Gianluca Longo all brought decades of experience to bear, as did moderator Claire German, the Design Centre’s CEO. “We want to give our audience what they haven’t seen before, and that can be a struggle. A beautiful struggle!” said Longo, who revealed what he does – and just as importantly, doesn’t – look for in a publishable interior. “Imagery is important, up to a certain point. Sometimes if [the pitch images] are overlit, I go back and ask them to take pictures on their phone with natural light,” he explained. “We also like to see a conversation between client and decorator.”

Pooley advised on the importance of maintaining ongoing relationships with journalists and editors: “You just need to keep chipping away at it, so you stay front of mind. Ask them what they’re doing that quarter, and see how you can help.” And Claire German focused on doing your homework and making sure that your project is a good fit for a particular publication: “Magazines have to stick to their DNA. It’s a challenge to constantly find representatives for your brand,” she said. “It’s so important to know the publications you love. People need to be smart and have some sensitivity to do it right.”

In between talks, there were ‘open house’ drop-ins to participating showrooms, including Tissus d’Hélène, Porta Romana and George Spencer Designs, where designers could get closer to the products and hear first-hand from knowledgeable staff. A 1895 showman’s wagon parked up in the Design Avenue – the pet project of photographer Simon Brown – was decked out in fabrics from Classic Cloth and Rose Cumming.

In the evening, there was a private supper for more than 300 guests, with top UK designers, members of the press and representatives of the participating brands mingling with the US designers. The Design Avenue twinkled under festoon lights and the hum of happy chatter and new connections made filled the room. The event cemented the already close transatlantic ties that the Design Centre has with the US, reconfirming once again that amazing things happen when the design industry comes together.