Virgin Hotels has announced the opening date of its Edinburgh outpost, marking the group’s first property outside of the US. Situated in the India Buildings in the city’s Old Town the hotel comprises 222 Chambers and Grand Chamber Suites as well as multiple F&B outlets, all with their own distinct design.
Billed to open in June, the latest venture is set to be followed by Virgin Hotels Glasgow later in summer. The site is also home to a 19th century church, now known as Greyfriars Hall, which has been restored and repurposed as an event venue. And to top it all off, a rooftop sanctuary affords views of Edinburgh Castle.
Warm textiles and locally sourced furnishings create a bright, airy feel, the Chambers feature Virgin Hotels’ signature layout with two areas; the Dressing Room includes a full vanity, double closet space for two, makeup desk and mirror, an extra-large shower with a built-in bench and toiletries by Arran of Scotland completes the room. A sliding door or drapery separates it from The Lounge, which houses Virgin Hotels’ ergonomically designed bed with tufted headboard, a fully stocked red Smeg mini-fridge includes a curated selection of local products. A television, ample outlets for smartphones, laptops or other devices ensures connectivity.
Spanning ten floors, guests have a range of options when selecting a Chamber or Suite, with 15 categories to choose from. Signature suite Richard’s Flat strikes the balance for Sir Richard’s home away from home with its restored architectural details and contemporary furnishings, while the Eve Branson suite – a nod to the Virgin founder’s late mother, found under the bell tower of the revived mediaeval church – sees dramatic architecture tempered with a muted palette in rich textures.
For those looking to stay somewhere a little different, the Moroccan-inspired Kasbah Tamadot Suite honours the Virgin Limited Edition property in the Atlas Mountains, with a secret second floor lounge adorned with traditional fabrics and festive lanterns.
The social spaces include Commons Club – Virgin Hotels’ flagship restaurant and bar – and Eve, an all-day dining and late-night entertainment space.
A collaboration between Virgin Hotels and Scottish design and architecture studios Ica, Four-by-Two and Joelle Reid Interiors, the hotel’s design preserves the original building’s notable elements while adding a sense of style and sophistication. The property promises a mix of old and new to capture the character of Edinburgh’s cultural heritage, combined with the personalised service the Virgin Hotels group is known for.
James Bermingham, Chief Executive Officer of Virgin Hotels commented:
“Edinburgh is such an iconic city and we’re thrilled it will be the home of the first Virgin Hotels in the UK and across Europe. Through dynamic contextual design and neighbourhood-centric influences the new hotel will be a cultural city hub, with a design that sustains the building’s heritage while adding a vibrant, new style to the area.”
In view of the dramatic situation in Ukraine, Messe Frankfurt has decided not to admit Russian exhibitors as well as exhibitors from Belarus to its trade fairs until further notice. This applies to all countries of the Messe Frankfurt Group that have joined the sanction measures.
Furthermore, Messe Frankfurt is also suspending all visitor marketing activities in Russia and Belarus until further notice.
Last week, Messe Frankfurt had already decided to suspend its events in Russia until further notice.
Virtual Worlds previewed a new update to its innovative design software at kbb Birmingham 2022. Virtual Worlds Professional Version 8 features a new graphics engine that provides real-time rendering with a level of detail it says has never been seen before.
Challenging the need for time-consuming photo-realistic rendering, the new graphics engine injects energy into the design where texture, light, reflection, shadow and sheen show their effect on the design as it is being constructed
Bringing the design process to life and ensuring buy in from customers at the early stages, Version 8 also gives the retailer peace of mind, making it simple to identify and rectify specification errors that may otherwise result in product returns. Material mistakes grab the attention straight away, woodgrain depth in furniture comes to life, lighting schemes can be adjusted, and colours and paint finishes can all be fully appreciated in a way that is as true to life as it gets with CAD.
With Comic Relief once again set to raise much-needed funds for charitable causes, there will be the usual range of weird and whacky fundraising ideas happening across the country. One of the most iconic, is the eponymous sitting in a bath of Heinz baked beans. But this year, Lakes Showering Spaces and Heinz UK are asking why should baths have all the fun in the name of charity?
The debate between baths and showers has raged for years, and won’t be settled anytime, soon, but with a fantastic walk-in showering space called the Cannes, Lakes spotted their chance, and have taken it, aiming to raise funds for Comic Relief in the process.
This March, anyone who tweets Lakes (@LakesForLife) using #CannesOfBeanz to guess how many cans of Heinz beans fit into their Cannes walk-in shower (pictured) will generate a £10 donation from Lakes to Comic Relief.
Lakes have mocked up what the Cannes enclosure would look like using the 1,200mm panel and the showering space’s maximum depth of 1,000mm. With a 2m height, the question in how many standard tins of Heinz Baked Beanz would fit inside the showering space?
Managing Director, Bev Brown, says: “Lakes loves to raise money for good causes, and this year we thought we’d do something a bit different. Everyone has had a hard couple of years, and sometimes doing something a bit silly to raise awareness of good causes and much-needed donations is just what is needed.
“We’d like to thank Heinz UK for working with us on this campaign, and we hope that all our media partners, merchants, retailers and colleagues across the sector will join in the fun for a good cause and let us know how many cans they think would fit inside the Cannes walk-in.
“It’s a fantastic cause, so get tweeting and let us know you’re supporting Comic Relief too.”
Any tweets tagging Lakes and Heinz UK (@HeinzUK) using the hashtag #CannesOfBeanz will trigger a donation of £10 to Comic Relief.
Award-winning bathroom brand HiB has partnered with sustainability and carbon recording platform Zellar, as part of the company’s vision to become more environmentally friendly.
To support the business’ journey towards a more sustainable future, HiB will be using the platform to measure and reduce carbon usage as well as support projects which promote diversity and wildlife, ensuring that improvements have a wider positive impact beyond the company’s sites across the UK.
This is the next step in HiB’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) journey, which will see the business focus on its approach to its people, products and supply chain, as well as the environmental impact of its operations. The partnership with Zellar will allow HiB to benchmark carbon usage and record investments and activities in order to improve sustainability across the business.
HiB Managing Director Robert Ginsberg said: “Making a substantial difference to the world we live in is a key part of our vision. To ensure that we are doing our utmost to reduce our carbon footprint and preserve our environment, we have partnered with Zellar, a platform that will allow us to measure, monitor and update this aspect of our CSR data. Being able to track our emissions effectively will help us as we start the next chapter of our sustainability journey as we improve our operations, products and procedures to become a more environmentally-friendly and socially-conscious business.”
HiB is one of the UK’s leading suppliers of bathroom mirrors, cabinets, furniture and accessories. Research conducted by HiB’s in-house CSR team identified areas that could benefit from more sustainable materials and greener energy. As part of the ongoing focus on CSR, HiB has installed a number of electric car charging points, increased the number of electric vehicles used as part of the company’s fleet, invested in solar panels at it’s Inspire House national distribution centre and is working with suppliers to find sustainable alternatives for packaging. But this is just the start of the journey, as work is underway to continue the company’s vision of making a difference, with more changes and improvements on the horizon.
Talking about the partnership, Zellar founder and CEO Gary Styles said: “We’re building a community of businesses that are committed to taking action to become sustainable and to reach Net Zero as soon as they can. There is no reason for any business to delay their efforts to become greener – our platform makes it easy for any company to start becoming more sustainable today. We’re delighted that HiB has joined us on our journey.”
45% of homeowners have looked into making their home more energy efficient but found it too expensive without government support.
A new landmark study from Cornerstone Tax has found that making homes more energy efficient is becoming a necessity for homeowners, with 36% thinking that making their home more energy efficient is a priority for them in 2022, however, many are finding the price of doing so a major obstacle, resulting in a staggering 45% of homeowners finding it too expensive to make their homes more energy efficient without government support.
Homeowners are searching for solutions to ease the increased cost of energy in their home, with external factors considerably affecting the price of energy, many experts believe that turning to eco-friendly solutions could be the answer. The rise in energy costs was caused, predominantly, by multiple energy suppliers going out of business amid a global energy crisis, thus meaning that prices inevitably rose. Price caps are set to rise by 48% on the 1st of April – this follows a £139 annual rise which was introduced last October. The increase in energy costs has caused considerable stress for numerous households throughout the UK, but for some, the solution could be turning green.
In the UK, homes are responsible for a fifth of the total of the UK’s carbon dioxide emissions, prompting the government to pledge that by 2035 every residential property should have an EPC rating of C or above as part of its long-term plan to tackle climate change. By making green renovations to your home, such as: loft insulation, solid wall insulation, ground source heat pumps and double glazing homeowners will make an estimated £890 savings every year, however, the cost which they occur when installing these features is a substantial obstacle for homeowners with costs in the thousands.
According to the English Housing Survey, the total cost of upgrading a D-rated home is estimated to be nearly £6,500. The easy option for upgrading your home to become more energy efficient would be to buy a new-build property, with government figures showing that 84% of newly completed properties being given an A or B rating.It is estimated however that 30% of homes in England and Wales are still rated E, F or G. Cornerstone Tax’s study found that 45% of homeowners would prefer to refurbish or extend their current home rather than move into a new build due to the environmental damage of new buildings as opposed to just 12% who are planning to move house to live a greener life. This indicates a clear want from homeowners to make their homes more energy efficient to combat the rising energy costs, but more help is needed from the government if they are to reach their sustainability goal by 2035.
David Hannah, principal consultant at Cornerstone Tax comments “It seems that homeowners all over the country are seriously considering turning to green renovations to combat the rising costs caused by the energy crisis. By making your home energy efficient, homeowners will save money in the long run and contribute to the UK’s sustainability targets also.
“The initial costs of making green renovations to your home is still a substantial obstacle for homeowners to overcome. Perhaps in the future the government can provide much needed support to homeowners who are looking to refurbish their home to make it more eco-friendly. There’s evidently huge demand for greener homes. The benefits of making your home more energy efficientcan be substantial. You will feel a sense of pride in helping towards sustainability goals and it will cut costs in the long run.
“If you want the benefits of an eco-friendly home, without the extra expense or the hassle then the solution would be to buy a new-build property. However, homeowners have grown connections to their current properties and want to stay there – choosing to refurbish their current home rather than move to a new property.”
Kbb Birmingham 2022 took place from 6th to 9th March and saw over 12,400 visitors pass through its doors over the four days of the show. The event is said to have featured the UK’s largest collection of KBB brands under one roof and offered more innovation, new products and sustainable choices than ever before.
Jon Johnston, kbb sales director comments:
“It has been fantastic to be back at the NEC again and seeing so many familiar as well as new faces. There were hundreds of exhibitors across 26 different product categories who were busy meeting visitors throughout the four-day event. There was a steady stream of people attending the show all extremely interested in finding out more about our exhibitors, new products and the latest trends. The show has been a huge success and it was great to see the KBB industry thriving. We are looking forward to doing it all again in 2024.”
Stands award winners
The show floor was packed with innovative and vibrant stands, allowing visitors to become fully immersed in new design concepts and experience exciting new product launches. Notable wins included Acquabella’s exotic beach-inspired stand with their creative shower tray sun loungers, – the company was awarded the ‘Best Bathroom Stand over 30 square metres’. Origins Living won Best Bathroom stand under 30 square metres for their stylish, nature-inspired stand, which showcased their range of designer mirrors, storage and bathroom accessories.
Positive sentiments were echoed by industry associations.
Richard Hibbert, Kbsa National Chair, comments, “It was great to be back in Birmingham for kbb. There was a really positive buzz on the show floor and we were so pleased to be back at a trade show, meeting in person with both existing members and potential new members. For independent retailers there was plenty of new products and innovations to see, providing visitors with plenty of inspiration.”
BMA Chief Executive Tom Reynolds said: “It was fantastic for the industry to get back together at KBB Birmingham after a long couple of years. Visitors and exhibitors alike got a lot out of the event, and the BMA were delighted to host our Sustainability Forum alongside the show.”
Trends led the way for new launches
The show floor reflected key industry design trends, such as sustainability with a range of innovations from the sector. Rotpunkt focussed on trends at the show explaining that 2022 will be a landmark year for blended kitchen spaces. The modern kitchen is being reinvented with industrial style spaces becoming more visually quiet and gender-neutral in terms of colours, materials and finishes. MERLYN demonstrated how sensory design can transform the most private of spaces and created an experience-led stand featuring six unique zones.
As in previous years, kbb delivered an outstanding launch pad for showcasing new product launches to a captive market of KBB retailers and specifiers. Stand out launches includedFormedand its handle rebrand from Momo, to Hendel and Hendel. The company says the new brand and evolving positioning, perfectly reflects its growing ambition in the marketplace. Countless companies took the opportunity to launch new brands including House of Rohl, which presented its brassware brand Riobel for the first time.
Sustainability
Sustainability came into focus during this year’s event with both the organisers and exhibitors placing it centre stage. kbb Birmingham andThe Used Kitchen Company (TUKC) announced a partnership to help exhibitors sell their displays ahead of the show to encourage a more sustainable event, and to make a valuable contribution towards recycling within the kitchen industry. The show also ensured that all its feature areas were created with sustainability in mind and were designed to minimise waste.
Exhibitor feedback
Across the show floor, exhibitors were delighted to be meeting with customers and partners once more.
Rashpal Sidhu, Managing Director, Roca Group said:
“We’ve had a superb few days at kbb Birmingham with a huge number of visitors flowing through the doors of our suite, to view new products and meet with our team. Our latest Roca bathroom collection Ona made its debut at the show alongside a preview of Laufen’s new Lua collection. It was fantastic to be able to showcase the ranges to our customers in person, for the first time. The entire four days have enabled us to truly reconnect and engage with retailers and partners, and we are delighted with the feedback we’ve had.”
Innovation Awards
The third day of the show (8th March) saw the winners of the 2022 Innovation Awards, supported by Blum, announced. The award scheme recognises the most forward-thinking and technically advanced products within the KBB sector and is one of the most hotly anticipated events of the show.
The Judges Choice and overall winner was awarded toBora for their X BO Steam Oven which can be used for roasting, baking, steaming and even cleans itself spotlessly after use. The Sustainability Award went to Furnipart for their 10 Ocean IX handles, made from recycled materials from the maritime industry such as fishing nets, ropes and trawls. The award was presented by judge Lindsey Rendall, President of the BIID.
The People’s Choice Award was voted for by visitors to the show, who came to the Innovation Zone to view the shortlisted products and cast their vote. Just under 640 votes were counted and the clear winner, with almost 46% of the votes, went to the RorosHetta SENSE Extraction Hood. The product has integrated smart technology features that focus on Indoor Air Quality and Fire Safety.
The award was presented by Richard Hibbert, KBSA Chair.
The 10 shortlisted finalists were displayed in an inspiring showcase across the specially designed Innovation Zone.
The Innovation Awards 2022 is in partnership with manufacturerBlum. Amanda Hughes, architect & interior design liaison at Blum who is one of the judges commented:
“We were delighted to continue our support of the kbb Innovation Awards programme. Blum is known as a pioneer of great design, so it is a natural fit to partner again with these exciting awards. The Innovation Zone area looked brilliant at the show and feedback from visitors viewing the shortlisted products was so positive. These awards really emphasise that innovation is thriving in the KBB industry.”
The owner of Hatfield-based worktop specialist The Marble Group was the lucky winner of a £5,000 prize giveaway at specialist industry awards night, the KBB Review Retail & Design Awards 2022 on Monday 7th March at the Hilton Hotel, Birmingham
Theo Constanti, owner of The Marble Group was the lucky winner of an audience participation game. While accepting the £5,000 from celebrity host Vernon Kay, Theo Constanti announced that he would donate the money to those affected by the war in Ukraine.
“One of the guests on our table was from Ukraine,” said Theo Constanti. “so, I knew what I was going to do with the money if I won. We do lots of charitable work, including working with schools and making donations. It’s part of what we do as a business. It’s all about community and kindness”
Theo is himself the son of a refugee mother who fled the war in Cyprus back in 1974 following the invasion of the country so the situation in Ukraine is very close to his heart.
The Society of British and International Interior Design (SBID) is back with its interior design awards for 2022. Entries have opened with ‘Early Bird’ rates, inviting designers to submit by the 14th March to take advantage of exclusive entry pricing.
Created to champion the world’s most skilled and accomplished creative professionals, the SBID will celebrate another year of interior design solutions with the 13th annual edition of the SBID International Design Awards.
The judging panel includes industry figures from companies at the forefront of design, media and business, with global digital director of Architectural Digest, David Kaufman; executive editor for Elle Décor (US), Ingrid Abramovitch; dean and professor of architecture at Harvard Graduate School of Design, Sarah Whiting; and CEO of Rigby & Rigby, Iain Johnson among them. Entrants have an opportunity to showcase their work on the SBID Awards’ global stage and exhibit designs directly to an audience of distinguished professional peers, press and potential clients.
With award categories spanning both the commercial and residential sectors across Interior Design, Product Design and Fit Out, SBID welcomes entries from all aspects of the professional design community.
Entries will close for 2022 at 5pm (BST) on 23rd May 2022.
Here is the statement in full from Tom Reynolds, Chief Executive, BMA.
In the last few days, I have been liaising with bathroom manufacturers to better understand the implications of the conflict in Ukraine on our sector. Over and above any business considerations, everyone’s initial thoughts have been with the plight of the Ukrainian people as they defend against unnecessary aggression. The human tragedy of the war is foremost in our minds.
There are some indirect impacts of the conflict that affect all UK-based bathroom manufacturers. Our industry has been struggling with inflationary pressure on raw materials, logistical costs, and energy for two years. The dependence of Europe on Russian gas is likely to exacerbate that inflationary pressure especially for those product categories that entail energy-intensive processes, such as ceramics. Copper and nickel are two important raw materials that are expected to be in short supply and are important in the manufacturing of plumbing products. Further price increases are therefore unavoidable.
Other parts of the economy are subject to similar or worse inflation. Continually spiralling cost of living may dent consumer confidence, as will the unwelcome cloud of a war on our continent for the first time in over generation. We’re currently in a historic period of high demand in home improvement; manufacturers hope that a de-escalation of the conflict, a thoughtful response to the crisis by policymakers, and the requirement to use savings before they are depleted by inflation will help maintain demand.
The Government has already warned that cybersecurity is a key threat, and while UK-based bathroom manufacturers have robust protections in place vigilance is being stepped up. The sector is also watching the wider geopolitical ramifications of the conflict closely. Russia has aligned with China in recent years, and Beijing’s response to their ally’s aggression may be a bellwether for the future of the world order. This is of critical importance to bathroom manufacturers with around half of bathroom imports into the UK originating in China.
For some companies, there are more direct impacts that are causing consternation right now. Many bathroom manufacturers are part of global groups with Russian and Ukrainian subsidiaries. Inter-group trading has been made a lot harder, and in some cases impossible by sanctions. Reconfiguring internal supply chain arrangements is not a straightforward or quick endeavour.
A few bathroom manufacturers have been working directly with Ukrainian factories and the burgeoning supply chain in the region. Those partners are now understandably out-of-reach, risking supply on certain product lines and in one case seriously affecting a critical launch. Nevertheless, the companies concerned have expressed the desire to support their partners with a commitment to return to working with them when possible.
It is manufacturers’ duty to consider the implications of the crisis on their business, and of BMA and our friends at the CBI to pass on that understanding to Government. Nevertheless, the sector is united in our concern for the people of the Ukraine and our hope for peace.
