Premier Hospitality

KuPP

KuPP
Written by Roma Publications

KuPP

The beautiful journey that led to the KuPP concept began one March in Stockholm with rivers still frozen, clear blue skies, clean crisp air, amazing food, culture, design and so much more.
The founders of KuPP wanted to create a quality all day casual dining experience with a strong focus on specialty coffee and premium drinks as well as one that embraces Scandinavian design and cuisine, while still sharing what they love about the UK.

Honesty and simplicity have been the inspiration behind KuPP, as well as a desire to use Nordic ingredients in a British way. KuPP wants to cultivate a casual style of dining, grazing, drinking and socialising with many of their dishes perfect for sharing.

The newest addition to the KuPP portfolio was designed by Jones architecture + design.

KuPP

Abi Perry-Jones, Creative Director at Jones architecture + design told Premier Hospitality:

“We were delighted to be selected to design KuPP’s new Southampton site – the team’s vision and enthusiasm is infectious and we knew we could really bring their ideas to life. We immersed ourselves in the world of Scandinavian design and took inspiration from creative icons such as Josef Frank, married with all things ‘hygge’ to give a real warm, cozy and welcoming feel.  It was important to evoke the sort of Scandinavian cabins where friends and family gather at weekends – a world away from any sterile, minimal environment that might spring to mind!”

Paddington was the first KuPP site to launch, followed by Exeter and now the new opening in Southampton.

Commenting on the design approach taken, Abi said: “It’s important that the design can evolve for each new site and demographic, while keeping the brand values and vision consistent throughout.  There are key elements common across all sites, but we took the opportunity of a new launch to look at what’s worked well already and what we can do differently to best suit the new space.”

Located in Westquay Shopping Centre, KuPP Southampton has a 484m2 space on the Terrace level, giving 200 covers in total.

Abi continued: “Our challenge was to create a site that delivered the central KuPP offering of Food, Drink, Coffee and Store throughout the day – distinct spaces within an inviting, relaxed, casual environment. Customers can eat and drink anywhere although loosely defined zones are demarked by considered changes in flooring, ceiling rafts and lighting.”

The spaces flow from an open kitchen and display of fresh pastries, to a bar area with high tables complete with inset chillers, and a relaxed lounge area towards the front which becomes more bar-like as the evening begins.  An established signature of the KuPP brand is the ‘Fika’ area – a Swedish tradition of taking time to stop with friends for good coffee, a pastry or slice of cake and a chat. There’s even a retail element which offers a carefully-curated range of Scandinavian-sourced homeware and foodie treats.

The design incorporates lots of warm, natural materials including silver birch screens and warm copper highlights, and even features a bespoke fabric design created by Jones architecture + design for KuPP.

KuPP

In order to deliver the right atmosphere, lighting was a huge consideration in the overall design.

Abi explained: “We have some beautiful decorative light fittings which make a real impact, but we spent as much time on getting the concealed lighting just right. We have concealed LED strips on the back bar to light the bottles to give a lovely glow, and we highlighted the KuPP logo in a large neon sign in the heart of the back bar. The site’s narrow shop front meant it was crucial to get the mood right and to make the interior really glow and to achieve a great mood from day to night.”

Jones architecture + design are now set to help KuPP with the rollout of a new location in the coming months.

Abi concluded: “We’re really excited to get started on our next KuPP site and to continue to help the brand grow and succeed. The KuPP team is really keen that each site has its own personality – they want to adapt and explore new trends so each new opening is an inspiring project for us.”

For more information on Jones architecture + design:

W: www.jones-ad.co.uk
E: abi@jones-ad.co.uk
T: @Jones_AD1

For more information on KuPP:

W: www.kupp.co

E: headoffice@kupp.co

About the author

Roma Publications