‘It was a welcome to the neighbourhood,’ says Marie Kristine Schmidt, Gubi’s chief brand officer, of the opening party for Gubi House, London, held on 15 May – a week before its new home in the capital, Clerkenwell, invited the world’s creative community for its annual design week. Behind a very smart front door at 12 Charterhouse Square, a block of Grade-II-listed Georgian terrace houses, Gubi’s first ‘360-experience’, as Schmidt calls it, outside of Denmark has been one and a half years in the works.
‘The grandeur of the place makes it the perfect canvas for displaying Gubi’s collection,’ says Schmidt, but with that weight of history (the house also stands on the site of a 12th-century Carthusian monastery) there were sure to be challenges, as well as the blessings of high ceilings and original fireplaces. Schmidt recalls battles with authorities to remove a wall on the ground floor to create what is now a showcase for some of Paavo Tynell’s most timeless lighting designs.
She also remembers the moment the design team began ripping back carpet to find wooden floors punctuated by nails that had to be painstakingly removed by hand. ‘It was worth it, though,’ she says. ‘It just felt right that, if we were to make an entrance into the UK, we should do it in a way that would stay true to who we are as a brand, but also really embrace the feeling of being in London.’
To help perfect the atmosphere and that homely blend of British and Danish influences, Gubi turned to fellow Danish brand File Under Pop, which selected the colours and finishes. Each floor was given a theme. The first is a modern open-plan kitchen/dining experience, while the next (pictured top) is dedicated to the 1970s revival that has characterised Gubi’s recent launches – a striped ‘Pacha’ chair by Pierre Paulin sits beneath a murmuration of Bonderup & Thorup’s ‘Semi Pendant’ lights. Climb the staircase again and there’s a chic co-working hub, while, up another level, there’s a bohemian feel complete with designs by Gabriella Crespi.
Open by invitation, the House will be more than a showroom, also acting as a community space for events and talks (its opening coincides with the launch of a dedicated UK online store). ‘We want the new house to live and breathe,’ says Schmidt. gubi.com
