PROFILE
The Club Room at The Curtain ,
London
Harris ’ other London project , The Devonshire Club , is “ where Mayfair Chic meets East End style .” The main building houses the club and a 68-room boutique hotel . SUSD was developer and designer .
External branding is discreet at both properties . “ If you ’ re a private members club ,” he says , “ you want it to be calm and subtle . I wouldn ’ t say exclusive , that ’ s not what we ’ re trying for ; it ’ s more about inclusivity , a community . London ’ s a very competitive space for all sorts of reasons . At the Devonshire Club , members really have a sense of ownership .”
THE ROAD TO HERE , BEYOND An architect by training , he has always had a strong interest in design and construction , although his entry into the profession was circuitous . He liked technical drawing at school but left at 16 with no qualifications . One day he answered an ad from an architects practice for someone “ good at math and drawing ” and from there went to night school to get the qualification that allowed him to go to university . He tells the story of meeting an elderly craftsman working on the roof of a building with a set of special hammers to fold the lead sealant , which made him appreciate that “ when you ’ re in an office somewhere working on a drawing , someone actually has to put that together .”
He met the Achenbaums , father and son , through a business partner . It was a joint decision not to brand the property Gansevoort . “ The people that live , work and hang out in Shoreditch are definitely after
“ PEOPLE
EXPECT NEW , NOVEL THINGS ALL THE TIME .
”– HARRY HARRIS
authenticity , and the Gansevoort brand could be seen as slightly corporate ,” he says . The Curtain has been well received because of its understanding of the area , which is arts and music driven . Harris is proud of the live performance space , which features everything from poetry to rap and burlesque to beatboxing . He is also “ super proud of the diversity and ethnic culture the Red Rooster brings , with the cooking and the art , the music and the culture . Locally , there ’ s a real appreciation that we ’ re celebrating that culture .”
The next planned venture is another hotel and private members club based around a historical building on 10 acres of Thames riverfront in an area designated “ outstanding natural beauty .” The house is known locally as The Grotto , and the intention is a 63-bed hotel with 12 lodges of modern design , set among trees , with two bars , a restaurant , spa , indoor and outdoor pools and tennis courts . They are considering joint membership with the Devonshire Club .
Harris isn ’ t sure the concept of The Grotto is remarkably different from , for example , Soho Farmhouse , but it will be specific to the locality . “ Soho House has the luxury of rolling out the brand as it ’ s so strong , but ours are more bespoke ,” Harris says , adding the he is a great admirer of Soho House founder Nick Jones for inventing a new asset class .
Harris also expresses excitement about a potential site he had seen the day before on Britain ’ s South Coast , showing Achenbaum a photograph . “ You could be in California on that beach ,” he says , and off they went to talk more about it .
48 hotelsmag . com April 2018