The first Montreux Jazz Café in the UK has been fitted out by Portview on the third floor of Harrods in the heart of London.
The £1.1m contract saw Portview complete the 3,000 sq ft fit out in 12 weeks.
The project involved stripping back three existing retail units to their original shells to make space for the new Montreux Jazz Café as well as two smaller shops - the Montreux Jazz Shop and a unit offering an exclusive line of official Montreux Jazz Festival products and luxury Parmagiani watches, known as ‘Claude’s Collection’.
The design concept was developed by Portland Design Associates and inspired by a Swiss chalet owned by Montreux Jazz Festival founder, Claude Nobs, as well as the unique musical heritage of the festival. Portview’s CAD team played a key role in developing the design, ensuring that all aspects could be implemented within the allocated space.
The scope of work involved completely refitting the area with new walls, flooring and ceilings. A significant proportion of the fit out was bespoke including a stainless steel serving counter, granite clad fireplace and a chilled display unit.
All of the work was completed while Harrods continued to trade as normal. To add to the challenge there was a customer walkway running through the site that had to remain open throughout the build. Some of the work such as installing new air conditioning units and lighting had to therefore take place out of store hours to ensure that this remained presentable and accessible for customers.
Portview’s contracts director, Sean McEvoy said: “The fit out was almost entirely bespoke and included a number of unique design elements. The result is a really impressive venue which reflects the festivals’ international reputation.”
Laurent Buri, operations manager at Montreux Jazz International added: “Fitting out in a live retail environment is always a challenge but Portview managed to complete all the work on time and to a very high standard. The result is an absolutely beautiful new café.”
The Montreux Jazz Café concept has been developed by the same team responsible for the world-renowned Montreux Jazz Festival which takes place annually in Switzerland and attracts some 230,000 visitors every year. There are currently only two other Jazz Cafés outside Montreux, in Zurich and Geneva.
More openings are planned in iconic new locations over the next two years, including Paris “Gare de Lyon” and Lausanne’s world-renowned technical university (EPFL).
