CO-CREATE: BOMBAY SAPPHIRE
With a relationship that stretches back a decade, Heatherwick Studio and Bombay Sapphire had a shared vision for the Bombay Sapphire Distillery. Project architect Eliot Postma and estate manager Will Brix describe how it all came together
Will Brix, Bombay Sapphire
Eliot Postma, Heatherwick Studio
“Thomas Heatherwick has a long relationship with Bombay Sapphire” W
hen a location scout from premium gin brand Bombay Sapphire stumbled on Laverstoke Mill, a
derelict paper factory in Hampshire, UK, he didn’t just discover 4.2 acres of land, but a site with more than 40 buildings, a history going back to 903AD and a protected river teeming with wildlife. Bombay Sapphire, which is owned by global drinks brand Bacardi, decided to restore the site – originally a flour mill and later the location for the manufacturing of banknotes for the British Empire – to create its first visitor attraction.
The company commissioned Heatherwick Studio to masterplan the transformation, restore the buildings and the surrounding ecol- ogy to create a gin distillery and brandland. When studio founder Thomas Heatherwick installed two glass houses at the heart of the scheme it was an inspired crowning flourish. The glasshouses, built from 893 unique pieces of curved glass, immediately became iconic. One is temperate and the other tropical, cre- ating the perfect environments in which to grow specimens of Bombay Sapphire’s 10 botanicals. Both harness excess heat from the distillation process.
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The distillery process buildings became the first refurbishment and the first drinks industry facility in the world to receive the BREEAM outstanding rating. Bombay Sapphire Distillery estate man- ager Will Brix and Heatherwick Studio project manager Eliot Postma led the venture from its beginnings. They tell us how the vision became a reality.
What kickstarted the Bombay Sapphire Distillery at Laverstoke Mill? Will Brix, Bombay Sapphire: “It began with a huge fire in 2006 at the facil- ity where Bombay Sapphire was produced. At the time, G&J Greenall were contracted to make the gin, but after the fire we decided we were big enough to establish our own distillery and set about making that happen. We bought huge traditional copper stills to distil the gin and we’ve made them central to the new distillery here at Laverstoke Mill. “We had a number of objectives: while the operations side of the business was dealing with balancing the rise in demand with the aim of producing the gin as sustainably and responsibly as possible, over on the experien- tial and marketing side, we wanted to show the care, craftsmanship and skill that goes into every single drop of Bombay Sapphire.”
What was the brief? Eliot Postma, Heatherwick Studio “Bombay Sapphire wanted to create a state- of-the-art distillery where they could produce all their gin on-site. At the same time they also wanted to create a home for the brand; somewhere they could bring clients and invite the public to experience the distillation pro- cess and to appreciate what makes Bombay Sapphire unique. Sustainability was a vitally important part of the development and under- pinned the design brief from the beginning.”
How did Bombay Sapphire and Heatherwick Studio come to work together? Eliot Postma, Heatherwick Studio: “Thomas Heatherwick has a long relationship with Bombay Sapphire. The brand has sup- ported design for many years through its glass design competitions – Thomas won 10 years ago with a design for a glass bridge. He later judged competitions for Bombay Sapphire and they’ve kept up a dialogue ever since.”
Will Brix, Bombay Sapphire: “Heatherwick Studio had that added insight about who we are and that was really big for us. There was a natural tie-in with their ideas. And we didn’t want to just do it, we
CLAD mag 2015 ISSUE 1
PHOTO: ELENA HEATHERWICK
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