Hospitality Design - July 2015 - 87

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tom dixon
By Alissa Ponchione
Photography courtesy of Design Research Studio

2

1. Dixon's Spun
collection of tables,
pendants, and sconces
complements his
luxurious mohair velvet
Wingback chair.
2. Distorted lighting
globe Melt is a
collaboration between
Dixon and Swedish
design collective Front.

1

RENAISSANCE MAN
An innovative designer knows no bounds

Tom Dixon has always followed his own
path. Known now as a prolific industrial and
interior designer, his beginnings were a bit
more unpredictable. Dixon, who was born in
Tunisia and moved to London when he was
5 years old, attended Holland Park School
in the '70s where his love of material and
manufacturing developed in pottery and life
drawing classes; in the '80s, he played bass
in a disco band (a particularly harrowing
experience opening for the Clash where a
rowdy crowd threw bottles at him may have
signaled a career shift. "It was terrifying"
but "we weren't to everybody's taste," he
says); and finally, he found his way to design
after a simple doodle of a chicken turned
into the now famous S-Chair. By the '90s,
he was a household name thanks to Jack, a
sitting, stackable lighting system.
That would be enough for a lifetime
for some but not Dixon. There are lamps
and chairs to design, accessories and even
fragrances for home to develop, "which

I always felt was a bit wrong for me," he
admits, "but when I started doing it, I
discovered a whole other world, designing
for the human nose."
In fact, Dixon creates for the complete
experience, engaging all the senses and
seeing how "products have different effects
on the interiors. I'm trying to go beyond
the obvious constraints of what designers
might normally do," he says. And though the
interior design part (relatively small) and the
product part (the majority) of his business
may seem different, they "work very well
as a kind of complement and give us a
different attitude."
After leaving his job as creative director
at furniture and homewares retailer Habitat,
Dixon started his own brand, as well as
its interiors and architecture arm, Design
Research Studio, in 2002. Melding the two
worlds added a layer of complexity, but
for Dixon it's always been about the easy
part-the ideas. It's "having any kind of say
in your own destiny," that's the challenge.
As is creating an infrastructure to house
the expansive business. From finance to
warehouse logistics to production and sales,
handling the details can be tough to navigate
but it's "starting to make sense as we get
bigger."
Dixon's success seems fated if not
meticulously planned, though his
accomplishments have never been a part of

a grand scheme, he says. After more than a
decade running his company, he is certain
the unforeseen outcome "is usually better."
Currently, he employs 95 people who work
on crafting new products sold in 52 global
markets including light fixture Melt, which
was introduced at ICFF this year, and on
his interior design projects like the Morgans
Hotel Group-developed Mondrian London
at Sea Containers-his milestone first
hotel, which opened in 2014. "Getting the
first project was really important," he says,
"and thrilling because you get to do almost a
whole village. You have spas and conference
rooms and large corridors," as well as 359
guestrooms and a rooftop bar to design.
Dixon's getting a chance now to follow
another passion, becoming a restaurateur
with Dock Kitchen-a collaboration with
chef Stevie Parle and interiors of course
by Design Research Studio-which is
part of the same converted Victorian
industrial wharf building that houses his
London headquarters and showroom.
He's also contemplating his next moves:
collaborations, for one, and working in
categories that naturally make sense as
another. "We need softness now, so we'll
probably do some textiles and practical
tableware." It seems the ideas really are
limitless. hd
t om d i xon.net

hospitalitydesign.com July 2015

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Hospitality Design - July 2015

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