The 77 year award winning designer Sir Terrence Conran is about to end his career as a restaurant owner as he seeks to sell off his entire restaurant business.
Conrans restaurants feature regularly in gossip magazines and are haunts of the paparazzi as they attract a wealth of celebrity diners. Kate Middleton, the girlfriend of Prince William, was recently seen at Sir Terence’s Bluebird restaurant in Chelsea whilst Quaglino’s is a regular haunts for wealthy diners
Mr Conran who was knighted in 1983 started his design practice in 1956 with the Summa furniture range and designing a shop for Mary Quant. In the mid-1980s, Conran expanded Habitat into the Storehouse group of companies that included Mothercare and Heals but in 1990 he lost control of the company. Conran moved on to create various London restaurants including the Soup Kitchen, Orrery, Quaglino’s, Mezzo , Pont de la Tour, Blueprint Cafe, Butler’s Wharf Chop House, together with restaurants in various other countries
His success can be understood from his mission statement
“My belief is simply that if reasonable and intelligent people are offered something that is well made, well designed, of a decent quality and at a price they can afford, then they will like and buy it. This is the abiding principle to which I hold, whether as a designer, retailer or restaurateur.”
His work as a designer has been rewarded with too many awards to mention. The Conran & Partners latest awards came from the design of Quayside Lofts Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear where he won a commendation at this year’s prestigious Civic Trust awards. Commendations are given to projects that are ‘of benefit culturally, socially or economically whilst making a valuable contribution to the quality and appearance of the environment’.
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