GARY RHODES Star Gazing - Mayfair Times

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Great living
spaces
THIS MONTH’S Mayfair Times has a special feature on
residential interior design. So, I thought readers might be
interested in Grosvenor’s experience of creating
contemporary apartments, many of which are let,
some sold.
Alex Proby is our interior designer at Grosvenor; she
joined us two years ago and loves the challenge of
creating great contemporary living spaces out of some
of the most complex and challenging buildings.
Here are some of her thoughts about what matters to
residents in central London:
“We put a lot of effort into internal layouts. As the
majority of our refurbishments is within period buildings,
reconfiguring a property can be really challenging and
calls for creative design solutions that complement the
character of the property. Charles Brice and Toby
Flannagan are among the architects we use; they are
completely in tune with the market and always surprise
us with innovative layouts.
“Must-haves include flexible living space, for
example a floating wall between kitchen and dining
room, en-suites to all bedrooms, dressing areas with
fully-fitted joinery and separate utility areas.
“A good example is a mews house where we have
added an additional storey. We have maintained the
period façade but have completely reconfigured the
interior, in order to create large modern living spaces
that are proportionate to the increased size of the
property and to open up the interior to maximise natural
light.
“Equally important are the architectural finishes. For
rented property, we stick to a neutral palette. It’s a clean
look that enables residents to put their own stamp on
the property with their choice of furniture, art, drapes,
etc. Our finishes are contemporary but we are wary of
using anything too fashionable, as this inevitably dates.
All apartments have high capacity cabling but we only
put in tried and tested technology as reliability is critical.
“To get the quality of finishes right we use a small
number of trusted suppliers that we know guarantee
quality craftsmanship. For example, all bathroom stone
used on Eaton Square is supplied and fitted through
Dave Goodhall, whom we know we can rely on to
quality-check every stone supplied and to fit stone and
tiling to an exceptional standard.
“A lot of the cost is in the ‘hidden specification’ – for
example, acoustic insulation between flats, booster
pumps for hot and cold water and drip trays with flood
alarms to prevent leaks to the flat below. A prospective
tenant may not originally notice these elements, but we
know they are vital in delivering the best possible living
experience once they are in occupation.
“We also aim to achieve a very good – or excellent –
eco-homes rating on all our refurbishments to minimise
impact on the environment. For example, we use
raindance shower heads that are aerated so there is less
flow of water but still have excellent pressure. We are
also testing borehole technology to provide low carbon
heating and cooling.
“More important than anything else is to know your
customer and to create a property that not just looks
good on day one but makes for an enjoyable and
trouble-free home.”
Peter Vernon
UK Investment Director