David Collins Studio Celebrates four successful decades

Posted in People on 16 March, 2025

Associates Iain Watson, Simon Rawlings and Lewis Taylor share memories, moments, and pivotal projects as they reflect on four decades at the forefront of interior design.

WORDS BY Emma Kennedy.

Forty years in the interior design business is quite an achievement, and one that David Collins Studio Co-founder and CEO Iain Watson is justifiably proud of. “As a client recently commented, there are very few UK interior brands that have spanned the same period. So yes, I am very proud of the enduring appeal and creative vision of David Collins Studio.”

Placing an age on David Collins Studio feels at odds with its design philosophy: creating timeless interiors. Step into any one of its many projects, and most would struggle to guess its age. In truth, asking would feel as improper as inquiring about the age of a stylish host. Yet, big anniversaries deserve to be celebrated – and few would argue that The Studio has much to celebrate.

Like most of its clients, the studio’s projects are high-end, highly polished, occasionally theatrical, and always confident. They share a timeless quality, bearing the unmistakable hallmark of a studio that knows its craft.

It all began with its late namesake and founder, David Collins, a graduate of the Dublin School of Architecture. Choosing interior design over architecture, he brought his creative vision to London in the 1980s, where he met Iain. Bonding in a bar over a Dries van Noten jacket, Iain and David struck up a conversation.

Above: Delaire Estate Interior Design by David Collins Studio. Top left: Iain Watson, Simon Rawlings and Lewis Taylor; Top right: David Collins.

Iain Watson: “When I first met David – apart from his jacket – I was immediately struck by his obsession with the colour blue, his refined sense of taste, his Armani clothes, and his deep interest in art and culture – both low and highbrow. Whether it was an incredible exhibition or watching Dallas, he had an appreciation for it all. He was always curious about so many things and often full of surprises – with a maverick talent for discovering the new and pulling together slightly disparate periods or elements to create something fresh.

We began working together later that summer, all thanks to the jacket! At that point, we were often juggling several different types of projects, ranging from private homes to bars and restaurants, or retail. In the early days, we didn’t have formal roles as such, but I understood David’s creative vision and helped him to realise his dreams. I had a great passion for fashion, architecture, products, and art, but luckily, I also had a technical sensibility and knew when to question some of his ideas. I was overseeing every part of the business – managing clients, The Studio’s operations, finance, marketing, and production, acting as a counterpoint to David’s thinking when he might need to be brought back to reality! It quickly became a symbiotic working relationship.

Left: London NYC. Right: La Tante Claire restaurant

David had already gained recognition as a designer when I met him in 1988. One of his first projects was a private house in Chelsea, which was photographed in Harper’s & Queen. When Pierre Koffmann’s wife, Annie, saw the feature, she asked David to design their first restaurant, La Tante Claire. Often referred to as one of the most beautiful dining rooms in London, it cemented David’s profile as the go-to restaurant designer.”

1990s
By the late ’80s, with a few inspired exceptions, London was desperate for decent dining. The city’s food scene was tired and uninspired, leaving hungry diners crying, “Enough!” Shabby eateries serving even shabbier food no longer cut it, and a wave of ambitious restaurateurs and chefs were happy to oblige.

IW: “By the early ’90s, the London restaurant scene was very innovative, considering that London had not always been a global destination for food. There were a number of chefs and restaurateurs producing exciting new spaces. My first media coverage was for Harvey’s – Marco Pierre White’s first restaurant in 1988. Marco was still an emerging talent, so it was exciting to design his first restaurant. A Sunday Times review with Jonathan Glancey marked the start of us working with a new generation of high-profile chefs, and with each successful project, we began to realise we were reshaping London’s dining landscape.

It was around this time that we met Karen Jones of Pelican Group, who came to us with this incredible vision of changing the British high street. She had designed a pilot café called Café Rouge and had ambitious plans to roll out this concept across the country. This was a step change for David and me. Suddenly we went from a handful of people working in his living room to a studio of twenty-plus people working on AutoCAD – which David quite innovatively believed would work well for multiple projects of this scale. Over the next two years, we opened a restaurant every 10 days, which was an incredible feat!

For inspiration, David and I loved visiting Paris – going to the flea markets, the galleries, the fashion shows, and parties – and, of course, shopping! We studied in exacting detail every nuance, from hand-cracked tiles to mosaics in the floor, formed zinc traditional countertops, and the lighting and furniture.

By the end of the decade, we had a lot of very loyal clients who really understood the work, the time, and the budgets required to create these incredible spaces. This meant that while we weren’t for everyone, we had a clear understanding of which clients would match The Studio’s values.

By now, the office had grown to fifty people, and then to seventy-plus people, but we resisted growing beyond that. David and I often said it was a balance of quality of work and quality of life. If the office became too big, there was a concern we would be taking on projects to feed the machine that would potentially not be creatively rewarding.”

Delair Graff Estate.

2000s
In 2025, it’s hard to imagine the luxury hotel scene without David Collins Studio. Its iconic contributions include Mandarin Oriental, Doha, the Delaire Graff Estate, and Gleneagles – but it wasn’t until the turn of the century that hotels realised its refined sense of opulence could extend beyond its restaurants and bars.

IW: “In 2001, David wrote and published his book New Hotel Architecture and Design with Conran Octopus, so perhaps expansion in that sector was a conscious effort. Either way, hotel design was a natural progression.

Having completed the bar at Claridge’s followed by The Blue Bar, the second La Tante Claire and Marcus Wareing’s Pétrus at The Berkeley , we had established a strong track record with iconic hotels. In 2007, John Ceriale of the Blackstone Group, a great champion of David, entrusted us with our first complete hotel project: The London NYC. This was an exciting opportunity, involving a 550-bedroom property that required us to open a U.S. office to deliver both this project and its sister hotel, The London West Hollywood. From there, the studio’s presence in the hotel industry really grew, collaborating with a wide range of operators and boutique hoteliers.

Like the Café Rouges, The London hotels were another step change. Delivering bedrooms in multiples was a whole new experience, alongside the vast range of areas, operations, and creativity needed to realise an entire hotel. Simon Rawlings, now our Chief Creative Officer, led The London hotel projects creatively with David Collins.

At the time, we had studios in London, New York, and Buenos Aires. London served as the creative hub, New York focused on client service, technical aspects, and delivery, while Buenos Aires handled the documentation and visualisation of American projects. But working on entire hotels came with its share of steep learning curves! Managing the phased construction of The London NYC – which remained open throughout the project – certainly presented a whole new set of challenges!”

2010s
Following the untimely passing of its namesake in 2013, The Studio remained resolute in ensuring David Collins’ legacy continued to shape its work. To this day, new team members receive a brand presentation outlining the studio’s foundations and history, a chronology of its projects, and the core DNA that guides the business. With a succession plan in place, Simon Rawlings took on the role of Chief Creative Officer, and to the outside world, it was business as usual, in a decade that included the redesign of Gleneagles.

Simon Rawlings: “When Gleneagles approached us in 2015, it was to work on the first phase of the resort’s redevelopment: The Century Bar, the lobby and lobby lounge, the public areas, The Glendevon lounge, and The American Bar.

As designers, Gleneagles offered us a unique opportunity to craft beautiful rooms within an architectural infrastructure rich with heritage and stories waiting to be told.

My approach to any project is always the same: it’s about understanding who will use and enjoy the space. Gleneagles had a loyal following of regular guests, but we also wanted to appeal to a new audience, so it was essential to create spaces that felt nostalgic, warm, comforting, and recognisable, while still having distinct personalities that embraced the DNA of Gleneagles.

The American Bar, Gleneagles

A great deal of the design drew inspiration from the natural beauty of the surrounding areas, as well as local artisanal crafts and historical textiles. We wrapped panelled walls in Scottish cashmere dyed to match the local heather, woven by a nearby mill. Pheasant feathers were inset within the frames of verre églomisé mirrors, and leaded glass was crafted locally. I wanted to tell the story of Gleneagles – its place in Scotland, its breathtaking grounds, and the incredible talent within its community. These elements came together to create spaces that are truly comfortable – grand yet intimate.

Our redesign is neither contemporary nor classic; it is simply and distinctly Gleneagles. I always question design decisions: when the hotel was first created, would these choices have been made? And do the new elements fit seamlessly within its core identity? I wanted guests to leave feeling they’d had a wonderful visit to Gleneagles, an authentic Scottish experience, not just a design statement.”

The Atrium, Cunard Queen Anne.

2020s
There are few sectors that have not graced the drawing boards at David Collins Studio — and now there are even fewer. In 2024, the launch of Cunard’s Queen Anne marked the Studio’s first foray into cruise ship design. Design Director Lewis Taylor reflects on a project six years in the making.

Lewis Taylor: “We often say our clients are the best in class, and for our first major maritime project to be a Cunard ship, we felt we were entering the sector at the very top.

After being appointed as designers, we took a four-day immersion trip on the Queen Victoria, travelling from Southampton to Hamburg and back. It was an amazing experience that taught us a great deal about how a ship operates, the passenger and staff experience, the dos and don’ts of shipbuilding, and the many complexities involved in designing one.

I think we were all surprised to be hired for the project, given our lack of experience in the sector, but that was exactly why Adam Tihany, the ship’s Creative Director, chose us – he wanted a fresh approach. Designers Sybille de Margerie and Richmond International were also on board, and the spaces were divided equally. The nature of the ship is such that one space flows into another, which meant we had to work closely together. It felt a little strange at first, but once we found our rhythm, it became a real pleasure.

In some ways, designing a ship is exactly the same as designing a hotel. And in other ways, it is completely different. At sea, a cruise ship is vibrating all the time, so items such as light fittings must be completely secure – things like that are a consideration. But the biggest requirement was meeting International Maritime Organization (IMO) standards. As a ship is effectively a hotel that changes location every two days, we needed to adhere to every country’s health and safety requirements, and that was a challenge.

Six years, from start to finish, is a long project for us. Two years were spent designing and drawing, and then there was the pandemic! But when I walked into the atrium, which had been on paper for so long, and saw everything we had worked so hard to create working in reality, it was so exciting. The beautiful mural that forms the backdrop to the sweeping spiral staircase, the colours and textures we had deliberated over for so long before adding them to the sample boards, the attention to detail – it was all worth it. Then there was the way the guests moved around the spaces and from venue to venue, the overall flow of the ship – it all just worked so well. I hope we work on another ship in the future, though maybe something a little smaller next time!”