Multi-functional fashion & design school fitting in sympathetically with the Soho streetscape

Condé Nast College of Fashion
conde nast college of fashion and design

Condé Nast, the internationally renowned publishing house famous for such titles as Vogue, Tatler and House & Garden, commissioned FCBStudios to design a bespoke teaching environment in the heart of London’s Soho. The design brief was to create a multi-functional fashion and design school that could be adapted for both teaching and event hire. The retrofit scheme had to convey a strong sense of the Condé Nast brand while fitting in sympathetically with one of Soho's liveliest streetscapes.

Key Information

Sector: Workplace, Interior Design, Higher Education, Heritage & Creative Reuse

Client: Condé Nast Publications

Location: London

Completion: April 2013

Size: 1,450 sqm

By taking on an all-encompassing role in the creation of Condé Nast's fashion college, FCBStudios has succeeded in delivering a timeless classic.

Amanda Baillieu for Building Design Magazine

inter-connected retrofit

Working with two existing inter-connected buildings we responded carefully to the rhythm and materials of the historic Georgian terraces.

External areas have been remodelled with large open spaces on the ground floor. The mixed brickwork is left exposed to express the layered history of the building. By enlarging the facing windows this texture is brought inside.

The entrance to the building is steel plated and opens into a double-height lobby, overlooked by the gallery. A two metre-high feature light in blue crocheted fabric by Naomi Paul and a mirrored wall in the foyer both express the design 'raison d’être' of the college and create instant visual impact.

conde nast college of fashion and design

Team

Architect
Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios
Structural Engineer
Jane Wernick Associates
Contractor
Blenheim House Construction
Cost and CDM Consultant
Jackson Coles
M+E and Acoustic Engineer
OR Consulting Engineers
Party Wall Consultant
Anstey Horne
Lift Engineer
Dunbar & Boardman Partnership
Fire Engineer
Jeremy Gardner Associates
Photography
Nick Rochowski

Awards

2014
AJ Retrofit Award: Higher Education Under £5m