yoo Studio

 

"It's all about you."

The yoo Studio is a unique design house with experience of cutting edge design in over 24 countries. Serving the yoo tribe internationally, the studio has completed individual residences and hotels as well as bringing to fruition the visions of Creative Directors Philippe Starck, Marcel Wanders, Jade Jagger and Kelly Hoppen. This gives yoo Studio a unique design DNA that could only come from working with the world’s best.

Headed by Mark Davison, the studio’s experience is enhanced by its diversity of over 20 architects, interior and product designers with big imaginations, providing a choice of looks and styles to suit the lifestyles of today’s modern dwellers.

They only source the best quality fittings and furniture from around the world to create interiors that are imaginative, rare and individual - just like you. The yoo Studio’s global design expertise has developed a unique understanding of designing in different cultures, to create projects that respect and enliven the cultures in which they live.The yoo Design Studio was originally established to service the ideas of its star designers (first Philippe Starck, then Marcel Wanders, Jade Jagger, Kelly Hoppen and Anouska Hempel) providing what its head of design Mark Davison calls “the glue between the designers and the developers.” Over time, however, this extremely talented and thoughtful group of product and interior designers and architects has inevitably developed its own unique intelligence and identity. Now the yoo Design Studio happily functions as a creative force in its own right, taking on residential and hotel interiors, restaurants and larger architectural projects. 

The team prides itself on taking on board the local context: “we’re not here to export European design around the world. We do a lot of research on the local context and weave that back in to the project,” says Mark Davison. “We know how to deliver unique spaces, and at different cost points.”

 

Angela Biddle

Senior Designer

Angela brings to yoo Studio, a unique vision and depth of experience developed across an international portfolio of hospitality, large-scale luxury residential and mixed-use projects. Adept at brand story creation, Angela is also a specialist in design thinking and brand synthesis to position projects. Her expertise has also developed an innate ability to design memorable experiences, always with a sense of place and occasion, while maximising the commercial potential of a property. A strategic designer, Angela has delivered programming and planning of technical services for complex developments throughout the UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Eurasia. Prior to joining yoo Studio, Angela conceptualised and delivered projects for Shangri-La, Rotana Hotels, InterContinental Hotels Group, Marriott International, Nakheel and Emaar.

Rachel Burns

Designer

Rachel studied at the Glasgow School of art and graduated 2010 with a First Class BA Hons Interior Design. This young designer has already been recognised for her talents, winning Bar of the future design award and has had her work featured in idFX magazine. Growing up she was always surrounded by design – her dad has his own interior design company. Upon graduating, Rachel worked at United designers for 1 year and a half on projects in the UK and overseas (London and Vienna) specialising in luxury hotel and multi-million pound high end residential design. She then continued specialising in hotel design at RPW before joining yoo.

Ignacio Corredoria Jack


Designer

Ignacio joined yoo in 2012 as designer for yoo Design Studio. An accomplished Interior Architect, Ignacio was immersed in design from a young age by his father, the artist and interior designer Ramon Corredoira. After studying in A Coruña in Spain, Ignacio finished his GCSEs in Boston in 1996, before moving back to Spain to complete a degree in Interior Architecture at the Superior Architectural School of Madrid. In 2007 Ignacio joined architecture firm HKS, where he developed interior design strategies for education, commercial and healthcare sectors. More recently Ignacio was based in Denmark where he took part in the development of the Better Place Visitor Centre project based on a ‘green design’ for sustainable architecture. Passionate about free hand drawing and minimal and pure architecture and Design, Ignacio’s other passion is the ocean and he enjoys surfing at every opportunity. 

Mathew Dalby


Studio Director

Since graduating in Interior Architecture nearly 20 years ago, Mathew has been involved in creating and project managing some of the world’s most exciting developments, at some of the world’s most diverse and exciting design studios. Beginning his career as a traditional architectural junior, Mathew then qualified as an architectural technician before leaving to complete a degree in Interior Architecture. Mathew has since been instrumental in the design and development of a wide range of projects from luxury hotels and multi million pound penthouse developments, to award-winning eco-homes and world famous wineries in New Zealand. Mathew also previously ran his own multi-award winning architectural practice, providing him with a depth of project knowledge from concept stage, through financial analysis to final client handover, which is vital in his role as Studio Director. As Studio Director at yoo, Mathew oversees and controls day-to-day operations of the yoo Design Studio, ensuring projects are correctly resourced, developed and completed on schedule.

Michael Delaney

Senior Designer

Michael Delaney grew up in London and studied architecture at the universities of Portsmouth and Glasgow. He has worked for some of the profession’s most inspiring names, including Rick Mather, Nigel Coates and David Connor, and the leading London design agency Imagination. Guinness, Ford, Vivienne Westwood and the University of East Anglia have numbered among his clients. Projects have ranged from complex housing proposals to bespoke furniture, and he has proved his skills time and again in both domestic interiors and commercial (retail and restaurant) projects. Michael joined yoo in 2006 and is currently leading concept proposals on projects in St Petersburg, Morocco, New York, Panama and Dubai.

Mark Davison

Head of Design

Mark completed both parts of his studies (parts 1 and 2) at the highly respected architecture school at the University of Canterbury. He started working with John Hitchcox as soon as he had graduated, helping to set up the Manhattan Loft Corporation. Within five years, he was Creative Director, responsible for every design issue from building development to corporate design. After a few independent years running his own highly successful and profitable practice, Mark once again joined John Hitchcox to assist him in setting up yoo with Philippe Starck. Mark’s architectural background and hands-on experience in the area of cutting-edge development has given him an unusual and valuable insight into the commercial machinery of the property industry, as well as the expectations of the clients. Mark, who lives between London and Sussex, oversees the quality of the output from the yoo Design Studio all over the world.

Alex Dey

3D Visualisation

Alex heads up yoo’s 3D visualisation team responsible for generating 3D visualisations for all yoo interior and furnishings concepts.   A graduate of Ravensbourne College of Design and Communication with a BA Hons in Product & Furniture Design, Alex brings a real designer vision and understanding to yoo’s renderings. Prior to joining yoo, Alex was 3D visualizer for Wagstaff Design and a designer at United Visual Artists where he designed constructed and visualised furniture & interactive installations in both permanent and semi-permanent environments.

Mark Eacott

Vice President, China Region

A qualified architect with over 8 years experience in luxury residential and hospitality, Mark worked in the yoo Design Studio for two years running a range of international projects and helping set-up new development ventures within yoo.  In response to the continued client demand for an architectural service from yoo - Mark recently took on a Business Development role to manage and promote the new offer worldwide. Mark comes to yoo on his limited-edition Vespa GT.

Kate Griffiths

FFE Design Management

Kate contributes to a variety of international projects within the yoo Design Studio, as a specialist in furniture specification, procurement & project management. Her first job with yoo was in 2005, working on The Lakes by yoo project in Gloucestershire. Kate trained in three dimensional design and Theatre Set Design in London, but immediately went onto working in interiors upon graduating. She has worked for Virgin Atlantic on all its Upper Class lounges, for BP on its head office in Surrey, for Sony, Pret A Manger, the Raven Group and many more, but always in the specifier's role. She is, she says, passionate about offering solid interior solutions, from specification and budget to interior styling and completion. When not working with yoo, Kate runs her own company, offering high-end domestic interior solutions for private residences and commercial clients. Kate is also the FF&E lecturer at London's The Interior Design School. 

John Hitchcox

Founder

John Hitchcox’s rare combination of entrepreneurship and design savvy has had an unparalleled effect on property development worldwide. In 1991 he co-founded the Manhattan Loft Company, bringing to market incredible domestic living spaces, carved out of generous post-industrial buildings, the like of which had not been offered in London before. In 1998, with his great friend, design giant Philippe Starck, Hitchcox set up yoo, a ground breaking property design and development company. yoo is now the largest residential design and development brand in the world. yoo homes have been designed and developed in large scale projects with partners across 27 countries. Designers Jade Jagger, Marcel Wanders, Kelly Hoppen, Anouska Hempel and Steve Leung have all joined the yoo family, creating a portfolio that offers luxury design in many different forms, from the cutting-edge to the most enduringly classic. yoo has won many industry awards for design, development, community building, hotels and residences. John was born into a family of creatives; his father was the highly respected architect, Brian Hitchcox OBE. John entered the world of property development aged only 19, starting on his own with a house in South London. John lives in London with his family.

Julieann Humphryes

Head of yoo Studio


Julieann graduated in architecture from Cambridge University in 1992 and has been head of yoo’s Studio since 2004. She has been involved in all yoo projects internationally, especially concentrating on the creative lead on yoo inspired by Starck residential projects and with recent collaborations with Marcel Wanders & yoo. Early in her career she worked with the celebrated German architect Daniel Libeskind and with innovative Australian’s Denton Corker Marshall. Her first job as a project architect with Philippe Starck was on the Sanderson Hotel in London. In 2002, Julieann co-founded  David Archer Architects and worked on high-specification interiors including the Busaba and Hakkasan restaurants in London, with French designer Christian Liaigre. The practice also designed recording studios, hotels, private residences and lighting. She has gone on to apply her experience to yoo’s growing international portfolio of commercial and residential projects. 

Anastasia Kessaris

Designer

Anastasia grew up in Athens, but has lived in London since 2005, when she arrived in the city to study at London University's Bartlett School of Architecture. She first came to yoo as an intern, and was invited to join the team as a fully-fledged designer in September 2009. So far she has mostly worked on projects developed under the yoo Inspired by Starck brand, from concept to detail. Something of an entrepreneurial spirit, she also ran a successful seasonal art gallery on the Greek island of Mykonos in summer 2008 and 2009, having converted a 74 square metre building into a contemporary art gallery.

Tarek Merlin

Senior Architect

Tarek joined the yoo Design Studio in 2011. Prior to joining yoo, Tarek successfully completed projects on a wide variety of scales; from large masterplans, smaller residential projects, to interiors and bespoke pieces of furniture. Tarek’s strong instinctive design approach and strategic vision saw him work with some of the professions most interesting architects, including Norman Foster on the Selfridges Store refurbishment and at Will Alsop's studio, where he worked for ten year’s on some of the studio's most high profile and celebrated projects. Tarek, who studied architecture at the Bartlett UCL, is also a freelance writer and lecturer and has been invited to lecture and be a guest critic at various universities and art institutions. Tarek also writes for ‘Building’ magazine and BD online, as well as for his own blog.

Gabriella Panopoulou

Designer

Gabriella joined yoo in 2010 after studying Interior and Spatial Design at the University of the Arts, Chelsea College. Gabriella grew up in Athens and moved to London in 2005. Gabriella initially chose the path of fine arts but was quickly drawn to spatial design where she likes to apply her artistic flare to the more disciplined aspects of interior design. Being particularly interested in set design, she studied performance design in her final year of her BA degree. She then participated in a charity project where she assisted in the design of costumes for the actors of ‘The Nightingale and the Rose’ play. As Designer at yoo, Gabby has worked on yoo inspired by Starck and Kelly Hoppen for yoo projects.

Anja Revenda

Designer

Anja joined the yoo design team in November 2012 to work on concept design, FF&E selection and styling. So far she has worked on yoo Inspired by Starck, Kelly Hoppen for yoo and Jade Jagger for yoo projects. Prior to joining us, Anja worked at United Designers and Lee Broom as well as freelancing for a number of years. This allowed her to carry out projects from concept through to installation, whilst honing her specialist FF&E skills along the way. Past projects include The Heron, ME Hotel Vienna & St. George’s Tower Penthouses. Of German origin, Anja moved to London to follow a creative career after an international upbringing in South East Asia and Turkey. Working for yoo allows her to combine her passion for exciting, cutting edge-design and travel.

Lucy Savanis

Senior Architect

As yoo Studio designer for Jade Jagger for yoo and senior designer for yoo Hotels, Lucy brings a design vision to yoo that has been applied to some of the world’s leading luxury residential and hotel projects across five continents. With an adaptable style, always with inherent understanding of modern luxury, Lucy’s skill is in understanding cultural context and target markets to create truly unique and always relevant projects. Qualified as an interior designer and architect, Lucy’s international portfolio of luxury residential and hospitality projects reach throughout the UK, North America, Russia, Morocco and the Middle East for leading companies including Ritz Carlton, Starwood Hotels, Marriott International and Four Seasons.

Zoe Starreveld

Interior Designer

Zoe is a talented interior designer and FF&E stylist with expertise on landmark projects throughout Europe and Asia. A graduate of the University of the Arts and Chelsea College of Art, prior to joining yoo Zoe brought her stylistic vision to FFE Styling and Designing roles at Blacksheep and David Collins Studio where she worked on projects including The Wolseley Private Dining Room, The V&A Reading Rooms, Aqua Restaurant in Hong Kong, The Puro Hotel in Krakow and and an exclusive new lifestyle hotel in the Middle East soon to be unveiled. As interior designer at yoo, Zoe is inspired by the diverse cultures of yoo’s client base and particularly enjoys designing in some of the more exotic and sun-filled locations such as Boracay.   

Gustav Szabo

Senior Designer

Gus studied architecture at Kingston and then Westminster Universities. After a few feet-finding jobs, he landed in the Virgin Atlantic Airways design department where he stayed for seven years, working on clubhouses, lounges and airport and work environments. Virgin regularly collaborates with outside design teams, and Gus worked with cutting-edge practices Softroom and Universal on several projects, experience which was particularly useful when he joined yoo in 2007. At yoo, he has worked extensively with Philippe Starck and with Kelly Hoppen on her first project for Kelly Hoppen for yoo at The Lakes in Gloucestershire. “It was fascinating to work with her so closely on textures and materials,” he says. Now he has embarked upon his first Wanders & yoo  adventure – a foyer for a Hong Kong hotel. “It’s great to go down new avenues,” says Gus, “and feel a whole new energy. Marcel is inspiring.”

Chris Troy

Designer

Chris brings to the yoo Studio over six years’ experience in residential and architecture design across renowned UK and international projects. Prior to joining yoo Chris was an Architectural Designer for Helen Green Design and Candy & Candy where he worked on a number of London based projects in Knightsbridge, Belgravia and Kensington and Chelsea. After receiving a BA Hons in Interior Architecture, Chris took up a junior designer role at Cooks and Malam before moving to Paris where he worked as lead designer at Laplace & Co, working on projects throughout the UK, France, Switzerland and Spain.

Judith Wahle

Architect and Interior Designer

Judith joined yoo in 2011 with over six years of multi-discipline experience in world renowned offices including Foster and Partners and Zaha Hadid Architects. A qualified architect and interior designer with a double-diploma from the University of Dusseldorf; Judith’s experience ranges from large scale masterplanning to interior installations and exhibition design. At ZHA she had a leading position in the coordination of interiors on high-end residential and hotel projects all over the world.   Last year Judith travelled to Central America, where she took part in a two month communal development project for a humanitarian organisation.

Hannah Wilman

Interior Designer


Hannah joined the yoo Design Studio in July 2011, with over six years’ experience as a freelance interior stylist for a range of respected commercial and editorial clients including ‘Elle Decoration’ and ‘Grand Designs’. Trained in furniture design, with a first class honours from the Kent Institute of Art and Design, Hannah has managed a team of 10 stylists as Creative Lead and Stylist for Homebase, and was also Shopping Director for  ‘Real Homes’ magazine where she ran the Shopping and Decorating sections. Since joining yoo, Hannah has enjoyed working on Kelly Hoppen for yoo and yoo inspired by Starck projects internationally.  In her spare time, Hannah enjoys painting portraits and still life compositions and often art directs voluntary style projects with her brother who is a photographer.