IN CONVERSATION
BOTTLE OF SAUCE
FOCUS ON...
TEA MERCHANT
With Clive Price, director of Barons Pub Co.
Re-defining neighbourhood bars in Cheltenham
Revivalist’s collection of original homeware and furnishings
Working with Fuller’s in celebrating the rich heritage of Canary Wharf
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Spring/Summer 2017
The ConcordeTimes CONCORDE BGW brings you the latest design and build news
The Three Guineas — Reading, Station Approach, Reading RG1 1LY
This Grade II-listed building was once the central railway ticket office for Great Western Railway, fondly known as ‘God’s Wonderful Railway’ in an ode to its success. Architect and chief engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel was responsible for its design and, as part of his pioneering vision to provide easy travel between London and New York, created the record-breaking locomotive, ‘The Three Guineas’. Fuller’s enlisted Concorde BGW to breathe life back into this tired train station pub, re-introducing the great history of Reading’s once grand Victorian station hall.
perfectly capture the grandness and elegance of early Victorian station waiting and dining rooms.
Mahogany panelling and a four-sided station clock suspended above a beautiful quartz bar,
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This theme is continued into the basement which Concorde have named Firefly, after the first engine pulling carriages out of Reading Station at its launch in 1860. In homage to this, a photograph of the engine sits in pride of place in the new cellar bar.
concordebgw.com
ConcordeBGW
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 Concorde have respectfully taken the pub back to its original Victorian glory through the design. Fuller, Smith & Turner — From front page
Firefly was an engineering task in itself requiring 60 cubic tonnes of soil digging out of the basement and extensive restoration works to create the space as you see it today. Firefly celebrates the age of the Victorian empire through unique features including; a bespoke mural depicting a map of the world at the height of the Victorian empire, a wall of top hats, taxidermy, apothecary and vaulted brickwork. This all comes together to create a truly remarkable space which will become indispensable to Fullers for functions, parties and private events. The terrace is vast and with upwards of 14 million people walking past
every year, the design plays an integral part in the prominence of the site at Reading station. Beautiful hardwood planters surround the outdoor fixed seating and booths, which are arranged under a cast iron canopy. Illuminated station signs and lanterns are suspended overhead, directing travellers to the different areas within the station in distinctive Victorian style. The overall finished design is timeless, suiting the buildings architecture and evoking the elegance of early Victorian stations and dining rooms.
three-guineas.co.uk
revivalist.co.uk
An eclectic collection of new and vintage homeware and furnishings.
Unit 15A J3 Business Park Balby Carr Bank Doncaster, DN4 8DE + 44 (0) 1302 639 210 info@revivalist.co.uk
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In conversation with…
My job… — Every issue we talk to one of our team to share an insight into their passion for design and role within Concorde.
Guy Bostock Director Q Was it always an aspiration of yours to set up your own company? A Yes, it was. My first business was creating intellectual property for TV animation and publishing. We had a TV series on ITV and published books with Harper Collins. I think to date 500,000 copies of the children’s books ‘Albie’ have been sold which I worked on alongside author Andy Cutbill. Q What attracted you to a career in the hospitality sector? A My admiration for the hospitality sector stemmed from the early days when I was supplying kitchen equipment to pubs and restaurants. In 2002 I went on to set up my own catering supply company called ‘Decked Out’, which later merged with Concorde. Together we founded Concorde BGW as it stands today. Q What is your proudest moment to date? A I couldn’t pin one down, but each day I reflect on what Richard and I have created at Concorde BGW and it makes me extremely proud of the company and all that we have achieved over the last two decades. Q What do you feel has been the most important development in hospitality design since starting Concorde BGW? A The rise of the independents and their take on what hospitality should be. Hospitality was an extremely corporate industry with big pub groups dominating the scene. When independents came into the market place, they re-defined customer expectations of pubs and hotels and now the corporate markets are doing a 360, adapting to follow suit. Q Which three hospitality designs would you say have influenced you the most? A I will always respect David Collins for all his pomp and attention to detail in spaces like The Wolsley. I also have a great admiration for Nick Jones of the Soho House Group and his simple but great outlook on life that is portrayed in his clubs. Finally, The Wheatsheaf Inn in Northleach, as it was the first award-winning site I was involved with and has been referenced in many pub and hotel schemes since opening. Q What advice would you give to a client about to embark on a design and build project? A It’s all about making money in the end. Any design or refurbishment scheme, large or small, should reflect that in their core. I know this sounds very business orientated but I believe this principal drives great design and longevity in the hospitality industry. Q What sets Concorde apart from the competition? A Our focus goes beyond a stand-out design scheme. We also ensure the fastest route to return of investment by helping clients to understand their customers and get the most out of the space they’re working with.
...the founders of Barons Pub Company
Leadbelly’s
We chatted to Clive Price about his award-winning collection of family dining pubs and the role Concorde BGW has played in its progression.
— Montreal house, market square, Canada water, london, SE16 7AQ
Where did it all begin for Barons? Surprisingly our journey didn’t begin with pubs at all. Our first business in 2000, was a restaurant in Cranleigh we named Barons. Eager to expand, we went on to open our first pub ‘The Star’ in Leatherhead and it was there really that we came into our own. We opened The Star at a time when pubs were shifting their focus away from being traditional, local boozers. This shift influenced us towards making a decision to concentrate specifically on the niche market of family dining pubs and so we sold Barons restaurant in 2003 and launched Barons Pub Company in its honour, which today has seven sites.
Formerly a Chinese restaurant with a confused layout, Concorde BGW have completed the design and build for Canada Water’s latest new food and drink offering, Leadbelly’s Bar & Kitchen. With a spacious new layout, Leadbelly’s brings a contemporary bar to the neighbourhood, bursting with character and quirky design elements. The design scheme, allowed for a stylistic fuse between industrial architectural features and foliage-inspired soft furnishings to create an “urban concrete jungle” aesthetic. Particular design features included a structural reconfiguration of a previously dominating long corridor that ran the stretch of the building. Having halved this in size and moved the toilets, the restaurant space is a lot more generous and the corridor has become a key design feature. Structural timber slats imbedded with an industrial light feature, created an alluring illusion drawing the customers through to the otherside of the bar, a previously un-used space. leadbellysbar.co.uk
Clive Price Managing Director Barons pub company
What sets your pubs apart from the masses? Ultimately our emphasis on the family trade. A lot of pubs shy away from attracting families, either choosing to rely on the drinks trade or focus on fine dining in the form of a gastro pub where the food markup is higher. We on the other hand believe we excel in making each generation feel welcome and comfortable in the same space through positive management and hospitality. Winning the Surrey Life’s Best Family Dining Pub Award was a proud moment for us.
How did you come across Concorde BGW? We discovered Concorde on a visit to ‘The Curious Pig in the Parlour’ and were really impressed by their new look. We’ve now invested in Guy and his team to design and build all of our pubs. Projects have ranged from smaller £150K facelifts to largescale refurbishments like The Rose & Crown, which included a complete re-configuration of the garden and introduction of alfresco dining. How much have the pubs benefited from investing in refurbishment? Hugely. From a financial point of view the business takings have increased by up to 25%, so we’ve already seen a great return of investment. On top of that, the staff members are now prouder of their place of work and the new design has given the pubs a sense of occasion which has led to an increase in spend per head and rise in repeat business. Guy and his team have shown invaluable commercial understanding, making sure we get the most out of the space we’ve got and getting more bums on seats which means money in the till. Concorde have transformed empty spaces such as old glass washer
cupboards and excess wine storage into private tables for six or cosy snug areas that customers now specifically request. Guy’s particularly smug about that one… initially we tried to fight him on it. Our latest project together is The Black Boy in Shinfield. Can you tell us a bit about the design brief ? Well it’s our first pub outside of Surrey, but close enough to still benefit operationally with support from the directors and senior management. It’s a beautiful 16th Century building adorned with a wisteria that happens to be one of the oldest in the country. Little is being changed structurally, but Concorde BGW has been tasked with enhancing the traditional features and modernising the essentials. Key design elements include lowering the windows allowing in more light and clearer views, as well as transforming the terrace with a central fire pit and an outdoor bar, which will be crucial in maintaining year-round trade. What’s next for Barons? We’d like to have 12 to 15 pubs opened within the next 10 years, and with Concorde on our side we’re looking into adding accommodation.
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The Bottle of Sauce — Ambrose St, Cheltenham GL50 3LH
Bottle of Sauce is the second, exciting project that Concorde BGW have worked on with Arkell’s and the ambitious duo behind the Dodo Pub Co brand, Chris and Leo. The pair briefed Concorde BGW to take a tired looking pub in the heart of Cheltenham and inject it with a new, vibrant lease of life in the signature Dodo Pub Co style. Inspired by the youthful vibrancy shining through the Dodo Brand, Concorde set to work on Bottle of Sauce, transforming it into a fun and
welcoming environment, stripping back to the exposed brick walls and steel works. The footprint of the building has remained the same but our design team have reconfigured the internal space to provide a much larger, improved operational layout that is inline with the Dodo food and drink offering. The finished article wows with invigorating, bold artwork, eclectic mix of furniture, versatile spaces (including a hidden DJ booth, games room and private dining) and a stunning feature bar, thebottleofsauce.com
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Focus on…
Revivalist It’s no secret that Guy Bostock and Richard Wilson, the directors of Concorde BGW, believe that original furnishings and homeware are one of the key ingredients for giving interior spaces their identity. These details play an important role in reflecting intended personality and lifestyle. With that in mind, and thanks to considerable demand from clients, together they founded Revivalist - an Aladdin’s Cave of interior fittings and refurbished homeware sourced from all over and pioneering in a mix of new and vintage furniture. Striving to be one of the top interior specialists in the UK, Revivalist has an eclectic range of clientele spanning from creative agencies to leading interior designers, hotels and restaurants. The company has a 30,000ft warehouse filled with all manner of finds and is home to a wealth of furniture, lighting, antique bellows, bric-a-brac and more. Adding the professional touch is an experienced in-house team of skilled craftsmen, on-hand to offer a complete wrap-around service for upholstery and refurbishment requirements. “We look to push boundaries and
bring new life to furniture, adding eccentric and eclectic twists to the usual adornments as we go along” What sets the business apart from the rest is how it maintains originality. Adventurous buying trips around the world allow Revivalist to frequently refresh stock lists with new and unusual items ensuring the warehouse is a compendium of bespoke and innovative creations which will stimulate customers imagination and transform their interiors. With an offering that promises a wide range of services from full FF&E packages to those smaller projects in search of a pièce de résistance feature, Revivalist needs to be at the top of your contact list for 2017. revivalist.co.uk + 44 (0) 1302 639 210
They are a key supplier for us and play an integral part in getting that final look and feel of the site right. If I am after something unusual they normally come up with something, and it is often a rather unique and unexpected something!
Andrew Durn Fuller, Smith & Turner
The Tea Merchant 25-27 Fishermans Walk, Canary Wharf, London E14 4DH
Paying homage to the local area’s rich heritage as one of the busiest docks in the world, The Tea Merchant has been re-positioned and transformed from a rather out-dated watering hole into an elegant bar and restaurant perfect for the bourgeoning food and drink scene in Canary Wharf. The dark interiors have been renovated into a bright, enticing dining area complete with an assortment of seating. Wanting to maximise guest capacity, these range from large booths that are great for groups, banquet and table seating for smaller parties and an intimate snug area adorned with vintage botanical artwork and soft blue and yellow
hues. Additionally, we added in ‘The Cabin’ – a stunning new private dining room elevated above the main dining area, affording guests a unique view through its glass-panelled walls at the stunning ‘living’ wall feature that breaks up the large space. Externally, The Tea Merchant makes the most of its enviable location with heated alfresco seating for up to 80 guests and eye-catching window displays nodding to the districts history of tea imports. teamerchantcanarywharf.co.uk
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This beautiful, Grade II-listed former town hall was originally designed by Alfred Waterhouse, the architectural genius behind the Natural History Museum and is now home to the newest Lost & Found restaurant site. This is the third in a successful line for the Revere Pub Co.
Lost & Found, Knutsford — Old Town Hall, Princess Street, Knutsford. WA16 6BY
After an extensive design and build refurbishment, the beautiful avant-garde site of the Lost & Found now successfully recalls the glamour of bygone eras and transports guests into the world of ‘mythological Victorian Professor Emily B. Kingsley, expert in the study of butterflies’. Design details include intricate nature themed wallpapers, hanging floral arrangements and vintage pendant lights that create a sense of mystery in this new elaborate drinking den and restaurant. A cosy, authentic atmosphere was created in the vast, high-ceiling spaces of the main bar and restaurant through a heady mix of light floral fabrics, art deco lighting and cleverly positioned fixed-seating. A hidden bar (essential in any Victorian hideaway) can be found behind a sliding book case in the events room and is subtly hinted at through eclectic bric-a-brac such a ‘Sshhh’ Neon light and stacks of Victorian books. Complimented by the exposed pizza oven and the decorative brass bar detailing, Lost & Found is the perfect destination for any connoisseur of good food, wine and atmosphere from morning through to late-night. the-lostandfound.co.uk/knutsford
Lost & Found has been transformed to represent the world of mythological Victorian Professor Emily B. Kingsley, expert in the study of butterflies.
Winner: Restaurant & Bar ÂŁ250k to ÂŁ500k
Shortlisted
The award-winning design and build specialists of the hospitality sector London Unit 114, Screenworks 22 Highbury Grove London, N5 2EF +44 (0)203 355 2297
info@concordebgw.com
concordebgw.com
Doncaster Palmer Street Hyde Park Doncaster, DN4 5DD +44 (0)1302 361 024
Concorde BGW is a specialist provider offering an integrated design, build and furnishing service that has delivered award-winning projects to countless bars, pubs and hotels in the UK. With a willingness to listen to all clients, we work collaboratively to achieve results which not only meet requirements but exceed all expectation. All of our refurbishments are completed to the highest quality and delivered on time and on budget. With company foundations nearly 25 years old and offices in both London and Doncaster, Concorde BGW has a proud heritage of craft and a solid reputation for delivery. We recognise that within a competitive market it isn’t simply about service but an ability to add value. Working together with the client, we play an integral role in bringing to life your vision and maximising return of investment.