With over 40 brands, Build HQ is a new retail space for architects, interior specialists and homeowners to come together
With over 40 brands, Build HQ is a new retail space for architects, interior specialists and homeowners to come together
Back in the 60s and 70s in Madras, for those of us who took Air India, the Egmore reservations office was a familiar landmark. This iconic building now has a new facade.
Architects Sunil Philip and Sidharth Ninan have partnered with VL Venkatasubramaniam to design Build HQ, a one-of-a-kind building materials marketplace for consumers, architects, interior designers and the building materials industry, with a clear focus on brands. Organized on 55,000 square feet. over two floors in the heart of Chennai, you will pass big names such as Kohler, Dormakaba and Saint Gobain, unique marble, wood, stone and glass offerings, highly functional solutions for floors, screens, cabinetry and window and furniture brands such as Featherlite, Kaizen and Bab Living.
Build HQ aims to be accessible to a wide audience, with an emphasis on relationship building. Designers, architects, brands and consumers, everyone is starting to talk to each other. “It’s a springboard for brands to present their products”, explains Philip; they have 60 now and will eventually have 80. You might not want to head to the outskirts of town to see your marble options, but a stop at Build HQ will do.
What sets Build HQ apart from an exhibition campus or a mall-like scenario? Brewed between the two waves of the COVID-19 pandemic, when the founders had ample time to reflect freely, the offers came together. Philip explains the fundamental premise: “Ours is not a place of commerce. Ours is an experience center.
Materials and equipment
This is where you will also discover new materials and innovative blends such as architectural aluminium, Eurobond’s aluminum composite panel (ACP) and UPVC, a substitute for wood with economical solutions for windows and shutters. doors. Nitin Wire manufactures architectural wire mesh frames for fences and building facades. At Floor Sketch, you can get outdoor acacia deck tiles, extruded WPC (wood-plastic composite) pergolas with an internal mild steel frame. INDOWUD NFC, a natural fiber composite panel made of rice husk, natural minerals, PVC and other fillers, offers an eco-friendly alternative to wood. Versatile offerings are presented on one platform: equipment manufacturers such as Emperor Lifts have installed a lift, while Mtandt manufactures tools, cleaning and building safety equipment, as well as cranes and scaffolding .
Luxury and technology
Consider Pranasleep, where in addition to natural luxury beds and mattresses, a 10ft. large seamless mosquito net folds up like magic on a roller mechanism. Then there’s Hygree, which specializes in hot tub and shower enclosures, both molded and custom built. On the first floor, step into a bespoke approach to stylish cabinetry by Anglewood Furniture Solutions, an Ambattur-based manufacturer. Especially for trade, they allow high quality customization of shutters in fabric, wood and composite materials, manufacturing everything disassembled to be assembled on site. Their spray booth process ensures a dust-free coating. Discover the premium line of window coverings and architectural products from Hunter Douglas; double mesh shades designed for variable opacity are a revelation. While Saint Gobain’s glass shutters in a vivid blue on aluminum frames sweep you away with state-of-the-art technology, Wurfel Kuche’s kitchens are a delight to behold: the floor sample features a mod makeover on designs obsolete shutters.
Artist and craftsman
Some of the center’s most exotic offerings come from Rajasthan, a state renowned for its handicrafts. Stone of India has the most wonderful collection of detailed stone inlays, carvings and tiles ranging from scalloped sandstone walls to a series of organic patterns on marble with a deployment of 0.4 micron gold leaf, each more elaborated than the previous one. Jaipur Rugs presents a magnificent collection of handwoven rugs with a push on innovation by 40,000 artisans and an enviable parade of designers from Indian stalwarts such as Ashiesh Shah and Vinita Chaitanya to Italians Matteo Cibic and Lorenzo Vitturi. Arisco from Gujarat offers a variety of tiles, both handmade and mosaic.
Food and friends
Typically, an architect would visit the center and spend an entire day with their client and suppliers before concluding on various aspects of the design. “F&B is an integral part of the experience,” says Philip. The other central intention of the founding architects was to create a buzz and provide a platform where the brotherhood can connect without borders.
Their inauguration today welcomes India’s leading architect Raj Rewal and Jimmy Lin of Malaysia, who has won numerous awards for architectural excellence.
Future agreement
Just as it’s easy to shop on Amazon, the partners want shoppers to enter Build HQ, experience the products first-hand, but have the freedom to shop through a purpose-built app accessible via a QR code. “If I can get information on Dorma handles, see the product, understand the benefits, get a tactile feel, pay online and then have a set installed on my doorstep, what more could I ask for?” asks Philip.
After Chennai, the team plans to open centers in Bangalore and Hyderabad, and in 10-15 cities across India over the next five years. The concept remains the same: strategically located in the center of a metro with convenient access to do business anywhere in the country. Introducing a handpicked roster of designers into coworking spaces is next on the cards with the freedom to meet, think, create and build.
The author is a brand strategist with a design background from SAIC and NID.
