Design Centre Stories

Meet the Showroom: ABI Interiors

Australian brand ABI Interiors, which makes high-quality, luxurious tapware, fixtures and interior accessories, is a new arrival in Design Centre East. With products designed in house, it is known for its inventive approach and broad range of colours and finishes. Co-founder Luli Farrell explains more here, from how the showroom’s interiors were inspired by a marble vase, and the hero product that’s always been a bestseller.

What brought ABI Interiors to Design, Centre, Chelsea Harbour?
We chose the Design Centre because it has some of the most prolific creators in the world, and we wanted to be part of that. With events like Focus that reach a wide audience and celebrate various aspects of design, we knew we would be in good hands for our first showcase in the UK. We also adore the natural light that streams through the domes – it’s such a warm and inviting environment.

What should we expect from the showroom?
For the design of the space, we worked with the wonderful Diane Martin of Atelier Racine. She was inspired by a vase from one of our favourite Australian homewares suppliers, En Gold. The fluted marble design has such a stunning texture and depth, so she centred the look around that, while incorporating London’s urban aesthetic and Australia’s naturality. Expect elements like bejmat tiles, bespoke Venetian plaster and a Crema Verona marble benchtop. The design allows people to interact with our products in a thoughtfully curated space that encourages exploring creativity and the unity of different places.

Why should customers visit in person as opposed to looking/buying online?
While shopping online is highly convenient, coming into our showroom provides a tactile and visual experience that we highly recommend to help envision the products in your space. Images can only provide so much, whereas getting to touch, feel and see the designs garners a better understanding of what products work best for your project and who we are as a brand.

What’s ABI Interiors’ design philosophy?
Our design philosophy is founded on fulfilling the main pillars of minimalism, functionality and innovation. We want our products to embrace and enrich the human experience with designs that are not only aesthetically pleasing, but ergonomically pleasing too.

Is there a ‘hero’ product that you feel encapsulates that philosophy, or a product that’s been a long-standing bestseller?
I feel like our long-standing bestseller is the ‘Elysian’ kitchen mixer [pictured below]. While there are many variations of this type of gooseneck kitchen tap out there, we still enjoy the concept that you don’t need something outrageous to create a room that feels like yours.

We’ve seen so many amazing unique spaces executed with ‘Elysian’, and its success comes down to versatility. It comes in eight finishes, which opens up a wider realm of creativity, and its construction ensures that it can perform efficiently into the future.

What are the broad trends you’re seeing in your sector of the industry, and how are your collections embracing them?
We are continuously inspired by coloured fixtures and how they can be applied cohesively throughout the home. When we curated our signature tapware finishes, it was apparent to us that the rest of the home deserves to explore that colour realm too. From something large like mirrors to something small like toilet clips, we have diversified our finishes across almost all of our products.

Is there anything else you’d like the Design Centre community to know about your brand?
ABI Interiors started because we, just like many others, had trouble accessing beautiful architectural products. We strive to improve and innovate every aspect of the company, whether that means products, customer service, operations or marketing.

While we’re an Australian brand, we do have employees around the world. Every business says this, but it rings particularly true for us: our staff are our family, regardless of where they are. We’re a close-knit group of passionate and like-minded people that have a diverse range of skills. We celebrate our commonalities and differences every day.

ABI Interiors, Third Floor, Design Centre East

Tags: ,