In the heart of London’s most fun and eclectic bar scene, nestled between offices and a trendy fashion retailer on Shoreditch High Street is Barrio East. This restaurant and bar destination stands out. In fact, it has made every effort to stand out in the busy hospitality sector where competition is cutthroat and your business lives or dies on the basis of its uniqueness and draw. And this is precisely why Barrio came to The Floor Shop.
Where it all began
Ferdie Ahmed, founder of Barrio, had taken over the shell of a unit in Shoreditch High Street in order to totally refurbish it to fit with his brand’s eclectic image. It was the third Barrio venue, so he knew the look and feel he was after – it had been honed on two already successful bar and restaurant venues, and this was to be the most ambitious yet.
Ferdie was clear on his requirements. His flooring had to stand out, it had to have show-stopping appeal, and it had to be green!
Barrio describe their venue as: “Bringing a slap of Latin attitude to your neighbourhood. Taking in the sights, sounds, flavours and fun, Barrio is colourful clash of Tropicalia, serving up fresh street food, cocktails with punch and music until late.” But it is so much more than that. Everything about the interior design of this restaurant bar has been fashioned to be unique and stunning, from the multicoloured wooden plank ends sticking out of the walls, looking more like precariously piled library books than walls and ceilings, to the assortment of greens and pinks, skulls, leather, tiles and brickwork. We knew we had to create something really special here.
Something really special
This is hands down one of our most favourite projects ever. Working closely with Ferdie we created a multi-shade green herringbone floor, laid randomly to give the impression of a mixed-up kaleidoscope of green, not an easy task by any stretch of the imagination.
This project gave us the perfect opportunity to utilise the latest addition to the equipment in our workshop, a sophisticated finishing machine that enables us to take our supplier’s best unfinished oak flooring and individually colour and finish it to exacting specifications and the highest quality standards. Now, even if our clients are looking for six specific shades of green to fit with their interior design demands, we can handle it with ease.
So, a 250sq metre space including restaurant, bar and dance floor, exacting colour and finish requirements, laid in a random pattern, and to a tight schedule as the venue had to open on time. No problem.
We worked morning, noon, night and weekends to get this floor completed on time and within budget (as always), and the results were truly spectacular. We loved the finished look so much we have a sample on the wall in the entrance to our showroom.
So, if you are looking for just the right finish on your flooring, whether to reflect your personality at home or your brand at work, then you’re already at the right place. The Floor Shop’s bespoke flooring service – now the possibilities are unlimited.