The new flagship Moben, Sharps and Dolphin showroom at Tunnel Estate Retail Park, West Thurrock, has opened its doors for the first time at 10am on Friday 30th July following the obligatory ‘cutting of the red ribbon’ by the company’s new CEO, Chris Pavlosky.

Representing a new era for the Thurrock store, which has relocated from its previous premises where it was based for the past 20 years, the new £1m showroom showcases an impressive nine kitchen, eight bedroom and eight bathroom sets.

With a lease of ten years, this 5,000 sq ft showroom has created 10 new jobs in the area, and features sets of the very latest ranges including the Ellipse kitchen, Pure bedroom and Venus bathroom. Each of these designs were inspired and styled by Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen, who is working with the three brands on new product launches and who appears throughout the new Thurrock showroom with his expert advice on designing beautiful kitchens, bedrooms and bathrooms.  

Pictured: Store Manager Pat Bagley (in the bath) enjoying a glass of bubbly with her staff: Lynda Coultish, Barbara Coyre, Jan Jarvis, Janice Albone and Marilyn Collis.

Peter Welsh, Retail Operations Director, comments: “The launch of this latest flagship store is exciting for Thurrock and for Moben, Sharps and Dolphin. The previous store had been hugely successful which is why such a large investment has been made to showcase the very best in kitchen, bedroom and bathroom design.

“We had a fantastic launch event yesterday and it was great to have the support of our CEO too. The team is very much looking forward to greeting our first customers and we hope that they are suitably impressed by what this showroom has to offer Essex and the surrounding areas.”

The new showroom’s address is Tunnel Estate Retail Park, Weston Avenue, West Thurrock RM20 3LP.

Sets on display:

Moben: Paris Ellipse, Sorrento, Ascot (includes Ascot Blue period colour), Geneva, Ripple, Edwardian, Harrogate, Urban Olive and Studio.
 
Sharps: Cosmopolitan Aubergine, Pure White, Malmo Walnut, Home Office, Highline, Urban Olive, Concerto and Latitude.
 
Dolphin: Inferno, Wave, Venus, Victoriana, Neptune, Mercury Plus, Ignite and Cube.

Styled by Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen

According to Moben’s new brand ambassador and renowned interior designer Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen, the modern kitchen should become more like a living room in its design and feel with cabinetry becoming a piece of statement furniture in its own right - exemplified perfectly by this dramatic new Ellipse kitchen.

 Featuring a contemporary curved island, with curved wall and end cabinets also available, Ellipse is an extension of the highly popular Paris range from Moben and offers a brilliant white high gloss finish for a real design edge. The central focal point is the island unit, designed to be a hub for both cooking and entertaining, with a highly attractive elliptical shape that guides the eye around the room.
As an alternative to the ‘horseshoe’ island is a stunning wave unit, offering another unique look. Not only do these diverse options and curved units make for an extremely attractive kitchen, they are very versatile and offer maximum storage and ease of access.

Integrated appliances, including a sleek oven, domino hobs, dishwasher and coffee maker, all make sure that this kitchen is highly practical to use whilst the bold cooker hoods and use of under-unit and plinth lighting add to the statement Ellipse makes and enhance the overall mood.
“Ellipse is a very exciting design statement which has a fantastic fluidity to it.” says Laurence. “It is obviously a very contemporary look but the elliptical shaped design has much more connection with the traditions of furniture making than it has with kitchen design which instantly makes it feel like a design orientated sitting space. That being said, all the appliances and features you could need for cooking are there; they are simply incorporated into the design so that the finished look is clean and uncompromised.

“Ellipse is also a very logically designed kitchen, as it maximises ‘working’ and ‘social’ spaces without actually taking up too much room. If the island unit was a traditional rectangular shape, it simply wouldn’t be as social but its curved design creates space for people to congregate.
“This makes Ellipse the ideal kitchen for entertainers and in the styling, I sought to emphasise the elliptical shape of the island cabinet by incorporating it in the accessories and soft furnishings. The great thing about white gloss units is they provide the perfect setting for any number of schemes so you can be as daring or understated as you like.”

Moben Kitchens, Sharps Bedrooms and Dolphin Bathrooms have unveiled their new ambassador - renowned interior designer Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen.

Bringing his own unique style to all three brands, Laurence now provides inspiration and styling advice when it comes to new kitchen, bedroom and bathroom product introductions and is featuring throughout the marketing programme, unveiled to customers for the first time on Tuesday, 22nd June 2010.  

All new photography of new ranges launched by Moben, Sharps and Dolphin will be styled by Laurence himself and a part of his role will be as a style consultant for all three brands, working with the new product development teams. Sitting alongside the existing brand experts, Laurence will be available for comment on the inspiration behind new products, style advice and trend predictions on the three brands behalf.

Laurence also has a dedicated ‘trends and inspiration’ page on all three websites – www.moben.co.uk, www.sharps.co.uk, www.dolphinbathrooms.co.uk – featuring his detailed insights into the design inspiration behind each new range introduced, styling tips and a look ahead to what trends will be leading kitchen, bedroom and bathroom design over the months ahead.

Furthermore, Laurence will also be embarking on a ten day showroom tour, visiting a total of 20 Moben, Sharps and Dolphin showrooms across the country this autumn. Consumers will be able to meet Laurence and hear all about the latest trends and product launches, with dates to be confirmed soon.

A close working relationship

Commenting on his new role with Moben, Sharps and Dolphin, Laurence said: “I have been working with Moben on the TV advertisement voiceovers for a while but it soon became clear there was a great deal of potential in becoming an ambassador for all three brands.

“My real remit with Moben, Sharps and Dolphin is to inject even more personality into these products and make sure that customers can truly ‘see’ the product within their own home. I can come up with the big, broad-brushstroke ideas that can take all three brands to an even more design-inspired position. I want to further inspire the design team, encourage them never to hold back on creativity and share my enthusiasm of this wonderful business.”

With regards to the existing product portfolio as well as the new ranges soon to be introduced, Laurence is excited about the potential all three brands have to offer the kitchen, bedroom and bathroom market.

“Moben, Sharps and Dolphin all have a reputation for quality, reliability and dependability, and I want to build on that. These days, it is no longer about playing the property market – it’s about making your home a home again. There is a now real hunger to have more personalised products. By working with these three great brands, I feel I can bring more personality to their beautifully engineered, thoughtful and well-designed furniture.”