Independent Hotel Show VIP Suite Sponsors

LEADING HOSPITALITY DESIGN AT THE INDEPENDENT HOTEL SHOW

AT OLYMPIA, LONDON

15 – 16 OCTOBER 2019

THE VIP SUITE

We’re excited to be taking part in this year’s Independent Hotel Show which takes place at Olympia in London on 15th -16th October. It’s widely recognised as the industry’s only event for the luxury, boutique and independent hotel sector and is dedicated to delivering inspiration and practical solutions to meet the demands of the modern hotelier.

Nature Squared is supporting Two’s Company Interior Design Ltd who have the honour of designing this year’s VIP Suite. We will be producing the bar front and table tops on display throughout the luxurious VIP suite which will be hosted by Samsung and act as an exclusive hospitality space for IHS members and their guests to host meetings, check emails or simply relax and enjoy the surroundings. The ambience is one of elegance with a hint of technology, and it offers a stylish, yet comfortable haven of calm away from the busy show floor.

The show appeals to chief executives, buyers and key decision makers in the hospitality industry (including large hotel chains and boutique hotels). We also expect to welcome a few celebrities to the VIP suite making it an event not to be missed.

LUXURIOUS YET FUNCTIONAL

Two’s Company’s design vision for the VIP suite revolves around the concept of sustainability making us an obvious partner for the show. Our table tops and bar front form a key highlight.

The suite is ‘zoned’ and flows effortlessly from the striking entrance with plush seating to the rear section with meeting table for up to 16 people. Café style tables and more relaxed seating is scattered around the room, creating inviting hubs for groups from two to eight. Those wishing for more privacy or a quiet space in which to relax can take advantage of banquet seating. Bold colours abound and the classic contemporary Art Deco style is very much in evidence. Comfort and exclusivity are the heart of this design; acoustic wall panels soften the sound and a range of bespoke fixtures afford guests every possible luxury.

“It was an obvious choice approaching Nature Squared when we were asked to design the VIP suite. Sustainability and luxury don’t often go hand in hand, but with such beautiful natural materials as theirs we have admired the luxury finishes they create for some time. With an initial bar front concept in mind, then extending the idea in different material finishes across all tables in the suite we were overwhelmed by the support, speed and efficiency the company provided us. Able to transform guinea fowl and pheasant feathers into unique colours to complement our scheme enabled us to create and enhance our design beyond our expectations. Each piece created has its own story and built on the whole ethos of sustainability both Nature Squared and Two’s Company adhere to.”

Nick Sunderland

Director, Two’s Company

We explore the innovative materials used in Two’s Company’s design in more detail below and we’re delighted that their first outing will be in this stunning VIP suite.

THE MATERIALS – SPECTACULAR FEATHERS

On entering the suite, Nature Squared’s table tops and bar front create an undeniable wow factor. The table tops have been crafted from guinea fowl feathers and pheasant feathers. Pheasant feathers are a new and exciting addition to our Select range of surfaces, while guinea fowl feathers remain a perennial favourite.

We feature table tops in our standard colours and patterns as well as bespoke custom colours and designs.

The bar front has been created from waste mother of pearl shells using an innovative and never-seen-before hand-texturing technique.

We’re often asked about the origin of the materials we use in our drive for true sustainability. Let’s take a closer look.

Mother of Pearl Shells

The shells originate from pearl farms in the Pacific where they are naturally discarded at the end of an oyster’s productive life. Usually transformed into buttons or chips (for other Nature Squared products or projects), we’ve taken these blemished shells, textured them individually by hand and then cut and ingrained them with a metallic coating.

Guinea Fowl Feathers

Used in our table tops, the feathers, with their distinctive spot, come from a farm in France where the birds are raised for the table. Nothing is wasted however, and their feathers now grace these beautiful table tops.

Pheasant Feathers

Our pheasant feathers come from birds harvested for meat in Devon, England for charity food producer, The Country Food Trust and are hand plucked by specialist butcher, MC Kelly.

Next, we carefully sort, clean and dye the feathers at our factory in the Philippines, before handing them over to our master artisans. In a painstaking and time-consuming process, it can take several weeks to produce just one of the table tops. The materials are sealed for protection, but skimming your hand over the surface, you will feel the texture of the feathers, giving an added dimension to their authenticity, beauty and tactility.

All the feathers we’ve used are shown in both their natural colours and dyed in custom colours to co-ordinate with the interior of the VIP Suite.

Upcycling these feathers is a perfect example of upholding our holistic, sustainability principles of environmental, social and financial responsibility. To that end, we are delighted to be working with MC Kelly and the Country Food Trust as part of a virtuous circle, providing food and creating value for the communities around us.

INGRAINED MOTHER OF PEARL CAIRO GREY

“The Country Food Trust is absolutely delighted that not only is the meat from our birds being used to help people in food poverty, but the feathers are being used by Nature Squared thanks to the careful work of MC Kelly. It always seems a shame that such beautiful and colourful feathers are not often used and it is great news that Nature Squared are using them so brilliantly ”

Tim Woodward

Chief Executive, Country Food Trust

CORALIE AND TEAL GUINEA FOWL

NATURAL GUINEA FEATHERS WHITE GROUNDING

CORALIE GUINEA FOWL

NATURAL GUINEA FOWL BLUE GROUNDING

NATURAL PHEASANT TEAL BLUE GROUNDING

CORALIE AND TEAL PHEASANT

METAL BASES FROM ALROYS

Such beautiful table tops deserved only the best when it came to sourcing the table bases. In order to create a unique, final look, we knew we needed to work with a metal expert. And so, on this project, we have worked with Alroys, a sheet metal and fabrication business, based in Hertfordshire. For over half a century, they’ve been designing and manufacturing metal products for a diverse range of clients. When we approached them, we knew they had the experience and the vision to design what we were looking for. Perfectly complementing our stunning table tops, these stylish metal bases are created with a perforated effect and in a tortoise shell finish.

Working with Alroys, we were able to bring together the core functions of good interior design: creating something which looks beautiful, can be appreciated by the individual, but yet has the durability and structure to fulfil its primary function. Our tables are undoubtedly aesthetically pleasing and tell a heart-warming story about sustainability, but they also had to be capable of supporting the weight of crockery, laptops and human pressure. Alroy’s manufacturing expertise meant they were able to propose a solution which offered this durability without compromising on design.

ABOUT MC KELLY

Game dealers, M C Kelly is based in the heart of Devon between Exmoor and Dartmoor and supply wild shot game sourced from the valleys between and on these two moors to hotels and restaurants across the county. MC Kelly also processes pheasant and partridge for the Country Food Trusts ready meals.

Due to the relative small scale of production, they can also carefully harvest the feathers, a by-product of the meat supply business, for companies like ours to use in our furniture and other objects. Andy Gray, CEO of MC Kelly, is a committed conservationist and a strong supporter of upcycling efforts like these.

ABOUT THE COUNTRY FOOD TRUST

Founded in 2016, the Country Food Trust is a charity food producer, producing and donating game products to people living in food poverty. Keen to support them in these challenging economic times, MC Kelly was thrilled to partner the Trust this season and support in their efforts to help the local community.

At the heart of what the Country Food Trust does is a brilliantly simple idea, but to work, it needs the support of the entire shooting community. Since inception, they have produced over 320,000 meals for people in need and their aim is to feed over 1 million people in need in their first five years. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation in 2016 classified 14 million people as living in poverty in the UK. These people have to decide between the basic necessities such as food, clothing and heating in order to survive.

The Country Food Trust currently prepares two products using pheasant breast meat; a casserole and a curry. Both are nutritious and warming, but also low in cholesterol and high in vitamins. Their chef, Tim Maddams, ex Head Chef at The River Cottage, created these recipes and they are supplied in special pouches, which mean they do not need to be stored in a chilled environment, have a one-year shelf life, and are easy to prepare.

They also deliver frozen and chilled meat and have created a recipe book for chefs who work at charities to help them conjure up delicious, nutritious meals. The recipes were donated by many of our top chefs – Mar Hix, Brian Turner, Tim Maddams, Prue Leith and Rick Stein amongst others.