Show Special kbb Birmingham 2018
he says. “When people come into your showroom, that’s exactly what the purpose of their visit is, to get inspiration for a space they want to create. “Our showroom is not just a series of cupboards in spaces and that’s where a lot of retailers get it wrong, in my opinion. I’ve seen a lot of nice-looking displays in showrooms, but too often there’s no fl ow – they don’t look connected to each other. “I wanted to give our showroom a sense of space and for everything to work in harmony together. So, you’ve got a combination of very different styles, colours and fi nishes throughout, but they all work together and that’s a challenge in itself.” Looking at this realistically, retailers who’ve been
in business for a while, simply won’t have the beauty of this kind of complete design process, unless they’re opening a brand new showroom. So, for a well-established business, the nature of showroom design is that the displays are rotated
and redesigned, but the basic layout of the space tends to remain the same. However, what this initial design thought process has enabled the Khans to achieve is a space that’s at the centre of their business and refl ects not only their ethos, but also their design style and capability. You get the distinct impression from the space that if they can make their showroom work like this, they will design a kitchen that will work for each client, rather than just end up as an accumulation of boxes on a wall. And, by considering the importance of the showroom to their business plan, they’ve created a space that will continue to work for their business as it grows.
The showroom In today’s changing retail world, with online dealers gaining momentum, some would argue that you don’t actually need a showroom to build a
Retailer profi le
successful KBB business. So, why was developing a showroom so key to Sheraton Interiors and how did they approach the design? “For me, it’s about how the place makes you feel. In a showroom, you can actually express yourself as a designer,” Shehryar says. “When someone walks in, it should make them feel a certain way. And, that’s not just down to the way it looks. It’s the music, it’s the aromas, it’s the lighting, it’s about how we greet them and how we serve them refreshments.” Nadia adds: “The showroom really gets across the kind of company you’re dealing with. As a designer, it’s your chance to show off what you can do. People want to be able to see what a kitchen by Sheraton Interiors is going to look like before they commit to buying one.
“Sheh and I have designed everything in this showroom, from top to bottom. We’ve included our choice of brands and fi ttings; we’ve used our own
Feature walls, fi nishes and accessories
The window display also has a feature wall with open shelving made from Schüller products, in a matt Indigo Blue fi nish. The shelves are set against a bespoke wallpaper, designed by Nadia.
“Sheh designed the shelving, using product
from the Schüller kitchen in the display,” she explains. “I couldn’t fi nd the wallpaper that I had in mind, so I just designed it myself. The shelves give the display that nod to the open- plan living trend, but also show how creative we can be with the portfolio of products we use. “A lot of people struggle to visualise how their kitchen will blend in with other parts of the home and that’s where my interior design skills come in,” Nadia adds.
Choose lighting to enhance displays
Situated at the front of the showroom in the window, this Schüller kitchen features a double island with a handmade, 80mm Spekva worktop, teamed with concrete reproduction fi nish base units. To add depth, contrast and colour, Shehryar has specifi ed Indigo Blue wall units against appliances from Siemens.
“One of the key elements of the showroom, and, in particular this display, are the lighting schemes.
As the front window display, it has to work as an advert for our business throughout the day and night. I wanted different layers of lighting, so we’ve got up-lights, double spots, studio lights and pendants all in this one display. Each type of light can be controlled individually. That’s important when we leave the showroom at night, but also when we’re showing clients round. I’ll sometimes switch the main studio spots off and switch the LED up-lighting off and, all of a sudden, it completely changes the space and the atmosphere. The original ceiling height was about three-and-a-half metres, but I wanted the fi rst layer at three metres, and then I designed these drop-down ceiling bulkheads and the lighting to go inside them. Lighting in a showroom is often an afterthought but, for me, getting the it absolutely right was at the forefront of my mind.”
March 2018 kbb Birmingham Special Edition kbbreview 19
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