Bar & Leisure Toby Maxwell speaks to designers shaping enticing spaces, and we assess a few examples of projects that have harnessed uniquely creative ideas to set themselves apart in a highly competitive hospitality field
Edited by Toby maxwell
Steven Saunders, founder of Fabled Studio, on the depth, immersion, character – and a dash of theatre – that makes a project really work…
What is your own background and what was the path that led you to specialising in hospitality architecture and design?
I’ve always enjoyed creating things and drawing. I left school at 16 and spent the next three years studying fine art. I loved to sketch and paint and was really drawn to the hand drawn renderings of the architects Frank Lloyd Wright’s prairie houses and Daniel Libeskind’s de-constructivist pieces. I loved the form, discipline and energy and wanted to create my own. That led me into my own architectural drawings and renderings, and I was also looking at a lot of famous product design pieces by Seymour Powell, which led me onto study 3D design at The Arts Institute, Bournemouth.
I was offered a placement at a company in the Midlands called GMP Design, and during my placement there I designed Cambridge’s Student Union Bar; it was so hands-on and I shadowed the boss for those two weeks. I felt that I learnt more in those two weeks than the three years of my degree! I was offered a junior design role when I graduated and I snapped it up.
I eventually decided I wanted to work in London. After a short stint at United Designers, I settled in at David Collins Studio and never looked back. The calibre and prestige of the projects they had on their client list when I was there was mind-blowing; magical for a new, young designer. The crème de la crème of chefs, fashion brands, hotels and super-luxe residential projects opened my eyes to working at the top level of the industry. The budgets (or more like, no budgets!), the finishes, the historical design references, the celebrities, the energy and atmosphere of the studio was electric when David was alive. It was extremely hard work and long hours, but the pride and honour I felt to be able to work and deliver such projects was second to none.
Having earned my stripes at David Collins, I set up Fabled Studio 13 years ago with my best buddy from David Collins – Tom Strother. We lived and breathed the long hours, attention to detail, hissy fits, pressure and dedication it took to last at David Collins together. We were both very young, but child and mortgage-free, and naive enough to start Fabled Studio and have never looked back. We started from humble beginnings and wanted to create a studio that people felt a part ‘of’ – rather than working for an eponymous name over the door, we wanted our staff to feel included and heard, and ultimately to enjoy the process of creating world-leading design.
My love and expertise of F&B design is something I have pushed hard at Fabled. I love the process of working with my heroes – from Gordon Ramsay, Heston Blumenthal, Clare Smyth, Ashley Palmer-Watts and Claude Bosi. We design the best restaurants for the best chefs in the world and I don’t want it ever to stop. Having the creativity to be able to align myself with such culinary royalty, to be able to design and deliver a restaurant that both compliments and enhances their food experience, never ceases to thrill me.
From the first idea being scribbled down on a piece of paper to standing inside it at the end of the project is captivating and I shall never tire of it. Fabled is a passion project and I feel that shines through in the diversity, creativity and personality of each of our projects.
There is always an underlying feel of a historic French wine bar’ at each Noble Rot site
What defines your studio’s approach to projects in this sector?
Depth, immersion and character. We create theatrical interiors of substance. We spend an awful [lot] of time researching each project’s brief to really be able to tell its story. We are storytellers and very good at doing it. Our projects are never themed but should a customer wish to scratch under the surface then they will find reason and meaning behind each design decision, which lends each project a soul with integrity.
What does the future hold for hospitality design in the short and long term?
I strongly feel that the most successful interiors are the ones that engage all of your senses, and beyond. We are seeing a relaxation of the more classical fine dining experiences to be more approachable; take a look at what someone like Gareth Ward is doing at Ynyshir restaurant or Michael O’Hare, and the food becomes a theatrical, overwhelming experience – which I’m all for! Fine dining is loosening its tie and starting to get ready for the party. The experience is becoming more approachable, more involving, less about the chef’s ego and more about creating a good time and a memorable experience rather than feeling out of your depth with the sommelier.
There is always an underlying feel of a historic French wine bar’ at each Noble Rot site
Please talk us through one of your recent schemes.
[One] project was the third establishment for our clients at Noble Rot. Starting as a lauded magazine that gathered a cult following, their intent has always been to shake off the high-end ‘bullshit’ surrounding fine wine and make it available for a wider, younger range of customers. Their sites are conceived in a way that looks ‘un-designed’ and like they have always been there, so we spend a good amount of time looking for a site that has the right amount of ‘wonky-ness’ and character. Each site also sits within neighbourhood villages – Lamb’s Conduit Street, Soho and now Shepherd Market.
We approach each space to have as minimal intervention as needed, embracing the foibles of the historic building to offer instant charm and approachability. There is always an underlying feel of a historic French wine bar to each site, so we like to use that aesthetic as an undertone to our design. www.fabledstudio.com
