What started as a side trade for a football star during the ‘60s, has since become a market leader for design innovation in the field of home interiors. Now boasting 4 studios across the UK, Nicholas Anthony promises quality, functionality, and a seamless service.
For nearly 60 years, Nicholas Anthony has been accumulating industry know-how to offer a specialist design service that takes the client from idea all the way through to execution. From sourcing, design to installation, Nicholas Anthony is on-hand to offer expert advice on high-end, ultra-contemporary as well as classic and traditional kitchens, bathrooms and home interiors.
Their industry leading kitchens and bathrooms bring together top designers and reputable brands from across the world, including Gaggenau, Miele, Sub-Zero Wolf, V-ZUG, and Siemens, as well as Antonio Lupi, Knoll, Walter Knoll, Caccaro and luxury lighting by Occhio to ensure that your new kitchen, bathroom or interiors space not only looks great but works brilliantly too.
FOUR speaks to Niko Rasides, Design Director at Nicholas Anthony, to find out more about the innovative design studios.
Can you explain a bit about the background of the company, and how it came to be?
Following a successful career playing for Chelsea FC, Brighton and Leyton Orient, Tony Nicholas Snr settled in 1963 in Chelmsford, Essex where he pursued his passion for carpentry and opened a small store supplying materials for kitchen fitters and DIY professionals. Twenty years later, this humble business became Nicholas Anthony, supplying high quality kitchen and bathroom furniture. In 1985 Tony Nicholas Jr, became Managing Director of the business which grew to four showrooms across the country. Partnering with the finest brands and suppliers, Nicholas Anthony is known for award-winning design and luxurious quality.
What was the inspiration for refurbishing the Nicholas Anthony Mayfair studio?
The studio on Wigmore Street draws on the architectural and symphonic history of this iconic part of London. Clean-cut lines and minimalist forms are combined with natural materials and artisanal finishes for a contemporary design language of unassuming sophistication and timeless appeal that both complements and invigorates the building’s architectural heritage. The result is a space that invites you to explore design and push its boundaries by bringing together the team’s skill for interiors with their interest in all creative industries, from fashion to art and interior design. It is an environment not driven by commerce and passing trends, but by a reverence for beauty, talent, craftsmanship, and for rethinking the worlds in which we live – a taster of what’s possible within the viewer’s own home.
How would you describe the work Nicholas Anthony does?
At Nicholas Anthony, we design kitchens and interiors that contrive to celebrate individual style and lifestyle, fusing a multiplicity of design influences alongside master craftsmanship, state-of-the-art technology, and a clear mandate to serve both form and function. It all culminates in one ultimate objective – to elevate daily experiences. A kitchen is at the heart of the home – a hub of activity and purpose. It’s the place that can set you up for the day and support daily rituals. These are the moments that count the most, and so, our team of designers work with clients to make sure the environment they exist in best serves the life they want to live.
Does Nicholas Anthony have a signature style?
As designers we like to bring something unique to the table, but we always do it cautiously and without over imposing our own ideas or style. Designing a kitchen or an interior space is an evolutionary process of design and feedback as you iron out the details. Usually, we try to start with a mental blank canvas. You need to empty your head of any preconceived ideas and listen; it’s the only way to digest the client’s personality and ensure you’re really thinking through your ideas so that when they challenge you have an authentic rationale. There’s a specific ritual to designing a kitchen and the client is at the heart of it.
How have the studios and designs evolved over the years?
Kitchen trends have evolved, and increasingly prioritise not only clean lines and luxe finishes, but a living space aesthetic. The more of the utilitarian function of a kitchen that can be hidden, the better. This has made way for an environment that’s designed to be enjoyed, borrowing materials and concepts not traditionally associated with the kitchen.
For example, the use of traditional wall cupboards has been replaced with floor-to-ceiling cabinetry to hide workspaces, cooking utensils and appliances. The island is becoming the hub of the kitchen, featuring base cabinets that largely provide space for the sink. Hidden areas behind sliding doors mute the daily grind. Everything is slim, refined and tactile; carefully placed display cases using glass and strategically chosen backing veneers are for artworks and select items chosen to make a statement about individuals and their home.
What makes Nicholas Anthony different from other design studios, in your opinion?
For us, design is a language with a sole purpose of elevating our everyday experiences. What’s crucial about home design is that it reflects the character and values of the people who live there – not just who they are, but who they want to be. We know that design has the power to be transformative, and our goal is to help our clients to create homes that take their ideas and daily rituals to a whole new level. That’s the journey we want them to engage with at our four studios.
What have you been working on recently?
We are currently working on exciting International projects in collaboration with some of the top Interior Design studios. 4 rooms in Antigua and a property in Barbados just to mention just a few. Creativity, design and the search for exquisite quality do not meet any boundaries hence we are honoured to present our work globally no matter the geographical location.
Do you have a favourite design concept or project?
The Ancient Greeks have a word for beauty: Kallos (κάλλος), and it continues to influence our sense of beauty today. The reason this word is so important is because it transcends aesthetics and encompasses our sense of pleasure, happiness, wellbeing and peace brought on by a particular sensory experience or observation.
All these elements are gallantly portrayed into a property we designed nestled into the verdant green of the South Downs National park. The ineffable soulfulness of this home is testament to the owner’s personal passions and the designer’s skill at interpreting them before creating a physical environment that nurtures them as well. Taking the simple inspiration of a perfectly executed yoga move, the house is almost a living, breathing Barbara Hepworth sculpture – all organic forms, natural light and seamless, flowing energy.
Proving that spiritual wellness and natural connectivity work in harmony with exemplary art and design, this home is also a showcase of artisanal skill and artist ingenuity. Every inch represents the embodiment of the owner’s personality and values, who they are and who they want to be, this is a home that is an entity in its own right. Living, breathing and coaxing its inhabitants into being the best versions of themselves, it seems almost to have its own language and its own voice.
What’s next for Nicholas Anthony?
Through successful collaboration with the best makers and craftsmen we work towards making Nicholas Anthony a recognized design led brand with international prestige and appeal.
To find out more about Nicholas Anthony or to discuss a design project, go to nicholas-anthony.co.uk
