URBAN LOUNGE - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Sales and Account Manager
Following a brief stint overseas, sales and account manager Bex returned to New Zealand and has joined the Urban Lounge Interiors team to focus on expanding the holiday park and commercial accommodation sector by fostering and maintaining relationships with new and existing clients.
With her, Bex brings a wealth of knowledge and extensive experience in refurbishments and new builds for commercial accommodation, communal spaces, reception areas and grounds planning. Having spent fifteen years at Papamoa Beach Resort (where for twelve of those years she worked alongside Christine and Sally on all the refurbishment and new build projects at the park) Bex is passionate about good design and bringing the potential of commercial properties to life.
It's why she's always on the lookout for exciting and innovative products to present to clients as part of the concepts. Once the concept is confirmed Bex will put together a quote and oversee ordering and arranging the products, which means she's often on site for the final fit out.
When it comes to the commercial sector, Bex's design approach is very much driven by the client's wants and needs and the accommodation setting. It's practical and well thought out but that doesn't stop them from being unique and ultimately providing exceptional experiences to the guests. As for her own design style, it's a mix of contemporary and boho. Think earthy - natural materials and fibres, lots of texture and open spaces.
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Project manager, Christine has over 40 years' experience in sales and supply and ran her own interior design retail store before joining the Urban Lounge team. Drawing on this experience and her wealth of knowledge, Christine oversees Urban Lounge's large commercial clients' interior fit outs with a particular focus on the healthcare industry and upgrading holiday parks' accommodation.
A varied role, some days Christine will be working with the design team to price everything up, other days she'll be procuring FF&E, commissioning buildings or project managing installations. ‘I love working with our team, everyone has different skill sets, and whilst I'm not a designer, it's great putting all their work together and being able to present it back to the designers and the clients.'
And as healthcare facilities and holiday parks have specific requirements, Christine works closely with the clients' clinical, F&B and operational team to make sure the design team has included everything they need so that the building can fully operate.
Designing a space that makes the staff proud is one of Christine's driving forces, ‘I love seeing our clients' and the public's reactions, whether it's residents in a retirement village or guests in a holiday park, I love to hear and see their reactions. It gives you such a great sense of satisfaction knowing that you have made the staff's life easier by designing a building that they are proud to work in.'
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Following a career in teaching, Junior Interior Designer, Kayla decided to follow her passion and studied an online diploma in interior design. It was only when she left Auckland and moved to the Mount that she fully moved into the interior industry, and following a brief stint selling homeware and furniture she joined the Urban Lounge team. ‘The great thing about working at Urban Lounge is that there is a wealth of knowledge to draw on - it's having that safety network to test ideas, ask lots (and lots!) of questions, to learn and not be afraid of making mistakes.'
As a Junior Interior Designer, Kayla's role varies week on week, some days she could be selecting finishes and furnitures for a residential project and others it could be selecting accessories for commercial projects, working on schedules or CAD work. ‘Creating visuals for people is my favourite part of the project, I love being able to look at a space and work out what would bring the client's vision to life. There's an element of instant gratification, in being able to present the visuals to the client and to be able to get their feedback and know that you've really understood what they're looking for.'
For Kayla it's the areas that people gather in and entertain in that are the priority - the kitchen, dining and living space, especially if the home is open plan. The heart of the home, Kayla believes it is key to really capture the essence of the home and the clients' in these areas. It's about thinking how they live, how they entertain and where they spend their down time that dictates the design. Along with the likes of Instagram and Architectural Digest, Kayla draws a lot of inspiration from nature, ‘I could be visiting Island Stone and see a beautiful piece of marble or a tundra and the natural colour palettes that I can then recreate.'
It's not just the incredible tiles and stones that Island Stone has that makes them one of Kayla's favourite brands, it's also because the team is so knowledgeable and always keen to help achieve the client's vision. As for fabrics, James Dunlop and Design of the Time are two that Kayla loves, especially the collections that have a strong focus on natural textures and colours, like the Japanese influenced stonewash linen.
Job Titles:
- ACCOUNTS & OPERATIONS
- Accounts and Operation Manager
Before joining the Urban Lounge Interiors team, accounts and operation manager, Louise, owned a furniture making business that worked closely with many designers including Urban Lounge Interiors. So whilst she might not be working directly on the projects, Louise has a strong interest and appreciation of design and the processes involved.
Day to day Louise can be doing anything from ordering furniture, furnishings, fabrics and accessories to coordinating the delivery and placement of clients furniture and window treatments. And that's all whilst maintaining the accounts and administration for the business as a whole.
Louise loves watching the design team pull together full residential designs, and it seems they might be having an influence on her style. Because whilst her favourite design style is transitional leaning towards traditional, Louise has noticed that since working at Urban Lounge, there is a lot more colour and texture coming into her home…
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It was the time that Michelle spent with her aunt that inspired her to become an interior designer. Michelle's uncle built yachts and her aunt designed the interiors, she'd often take Michelle on shopping trips to find pieces for the yacht and they'd watch home design shows together. Fast forward a few years and Michelle studied interior design at university and went on to work as a designer in South Africa before moving to New Zealand with a stint working on superyachts in between.
Every day is different for Michelle, sometimes it's creative and other days it'll be more technical but it's something she says she really loves about the role, ‘I knew I didn't want a job where I did the same thing everyday. Some days I'm working on CAD drawings or furniture schedules and other days I might be designing an accessible bathroom or putting together a visual of pretty fabrics.'
Michelle is drawn to residential projects because you can let the personality shine through the design and in particular she enjoys designing cabinetry such as bathroom vanities and kitchens because it gives that mix of both technical and creative. Always with her camera to hand, Michelle is constantly taking photos of things that inspire her so she can refer back to them when she's designing. Some days it might be a cool restaurant, other times it'll be looking over her photos from her extensive travels around the world.
As for Michelle's favourite style it's Scandinavian. ‘I love the light and airy look with lots of natural woods and white tones - and maybe a little pop of colour!'
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Psychology and negotiation, two things that probably don't come to mind when you think about the role of a creative director, but as Urban Lounge, creative director Sally has found, they're two skills she draws upon during briefing. ‘There's a lot of using your sixth sense, to understand the part of the brief that a client might not be able to articulate. It's why I like to ask about someone's wardrobe, it gives me a feel for your preferences and your lifestyle. If your wardrobe is full of bright colours then chances are you don't want a completely neutral interior.' Interior design also entails negotiation, whether it's negotiating between a couple who can't decide on a brief or pitching your concept to a commercial client.
Day to day Sally liaises with the clients, many of whom are repeat clients who they have been working with for years. ‘Whilst I love certain projects, what I really love is working with great clients - the more scope they give us, the more our creative juices can flow and the more we can deliver.' Interiors can be divided into different spheres of expertise, both scientific and emotive and it's the emotive side that Sally is drawn to. ‘I like imagining finishes and seeing a project through to the end, so I can see it as a lived-in or occupied space.' It's why some of Sally's favourite spaces to design are bedrooms or lounges, it's all about creating an inviting space that people want to retreat to at the end of a busy day. It's a mix of colours and textures that will catch Sally's eye before form or function. Whilst show homes and magazines don't inspire Sally, glimpses throughout the day do. Maybe it's a dried branch on a tiled surface and the way light plays around it, perhaps it's the leg of a chair against a wool carpet - even mess, (which drives Sally crazy!) can provide little bits of inspiration, in the way two patterns work together.
When it comes to her own style, it's all about textures, natural noble materials and understated casual tones and colours rather than clear brights. ‘If I'm choosing a tile I like to use natural stone or natural timber which we can stain to make it more contemporary. I adore Hare + Klein (led by Meryl Hare's) interiors as a practice, they create a lot of finishes I adore, normally including something that is handmade, so it's not so shiny and polished. Favourite brands include Elitis (wall coverings and accessories) and fabric supply company, Designs of the Times.
One of the most important things as a business owner though? Achieving a work/life balance. Urban Lounge works on brilliant award-winning projects with renowned clients, but unlike a more corporate interior design firm, Sally wants to ensure that her team can deliver without burning out, hating the industry or not being able to be there for their families.