The Stratford by Space Copenhagen

Photographer: Joachim Wichmann

Photographer: Rich Stapleton

The Stratford has opened with interiors, bespoke furniture and accessories by Danish design studio Space Copenhagen. The Stratford is a hotel located within the ambitious new East London skyscraper pioneered by Harry Handelsman, founder of Chiltern Firehouse and the restored St Pancras Hotel. The spectacular double-cantilevered 42-storey building is designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) and situated in the upcoming cultural hub of Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, East London.

Occupying the first seven stories of the building with 145 guestrooms and suites, The Stratford combines world class design, hospitality and culture. The concept celebrates timeless glamour, future cityscapes and the notion of long-term residents of 1950s New York’s legendary Chelsea hotel.

Space Copenhagen has created the interior design concept for the building’s lobby, hotel guestrooms, mezzanine, the ground floor Stratford Brasserie, as well as 7th floor restaurant, Allegra. The public areas each have distinctive design characteristics but overall seek to interweave, allowing visitors to move seamlessly between the spaces. Gently textured plastered walls, natural oak in earthy tones, warm metals and natural stones framed by a polished and dark pigmented concrete floor, serve to softly contrast the strong modern structure of the tower itself.

Upon entering the building, the architectural experience on the ground floor pivots around a large ninemetre high fireplace that anchors the triple height lobby, providing a sophisticated and dramatic community space. Guests are then drawn towards the hand-crafted reception desk, which is crafted in oak with darkened brass detailing and offset by sculptural lighting.

The spacious guestrooms are modern, intimate, comfortable and well-balanced, with floor-to-ceiling windows allowing generous light. Natural woods in different hues, warm metals and softly curved

upholstered shapes complement each other. Stone-clad bathrooms with a serene ambience, heated floors, separate bathtubs and sculpted vanity mirrors offer supreme comfort. In all of the rooms Space Copenhagen has designed vanities and vanity mirrors, beds, bedside tables and desks exclusively for The Stratford. Besides their extensive bespoke work for the property, Space Copenhagen has included key furniture pieces from within their existing design portfolio in distinct upholstery and finishes for The Stratford from the likes of Gubi, Stellar Works and Benchmark.

Founded in 2005 by Signe Bindslev Henriksen and Peter Bundgaard Rutzou, Space Copenhagen works across multiple disciplines from furniture, lighting, and refined objects, to art installations and art direction, to interior design for private homes, hotels, and restaurants. The studio’s intuitive approach embodies designs that are distinctively shaped by given circumstances, functional needs, and a fundamental interest in human behavior. It is a sense of and belief in a slow aesthetic that centers quality and longevity.

Space Copenhagen’s Signe Bindslev Henriksen and Peter Bundgaard Rützou comment: “We are fascinated by the location and having the opportunity to be a part of creating a future identity for Stratford. We cannot wait to spend a whole day at the Stratford starting with drinks around the fireplace in the lobby, ascending the staircase into the mezzanine club for intimate conversation and a light snack and completing the evening by dining at Allegra.

Harry is incredibly inspiring and energetic, fueled by vision and capable of mobilizing his desire to go there. From start to finish, Harry’s proportionate combination of good sense and curiosity has been as stimulating as it has been instrumental for the many conversations that are paramount when venturing into a concept like this.”

Manhattan Loft Corporation CEO, Harry Handelsman notes, “Picture the perfect 21st century hotel, what do you see? Impeccable facilities, immaculate service and a great location are all vital. But it needs that unique pulse those famous Manhattan hotels had, like the Carlyle or the Chelsea. A club, meeting place, hotel and home that never treats you like you’re ordinary.”