Famous Interior Designers Series - Terence Conran

Terence Conran is a well-known interior designer, restaurateur, writer and retailer of fashion, furnishings and household goods. He was born to Gerard Rupert Conran and Christina Mabel on October 4, 1931 in Kingston-upon-Thames, England.

Conran did his initial schooling in Bryanston Public School in Dorset, where he learned woodwork, pottery and metalwork, and went on to graduate from the Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design. After completing his studies in textile design, he worked at the Rayon Centre. Then, along with Eduardo Paolozzi he set up a furniture company. He began his Soup Kitchen business with his friends in 1953. Afterwards, he worked as a freelance furniture designer and founded Conran Design Group in 1956.

In 1964, he opened a home furnishing store in London named ‘Habitat’. Habitat offered good quality, modernized furniture and household goods at affordable prices. By 1977 Habitat grew into a chain of 32 stores sited around Britain, France and Belgium. Mothercare, which sells clothes for mothers and young children, and Hepworth stores that sell men’s wear are the other retail holdings that Conran owns. Habitat, Mothercare and British Home Stores merged together to form the Storehouse Group.

In 1990, he retired from Storehouse as he lost control over the company, and established Conran Associates which later developed into a leading design consultancy in Europe. He further expanded his design realm to include office products, clothing, graphic design projects, and so on. Terence Conran was also involved with the interior design and architecture of Michelin House and Bluebird Garage. He played a key role in the restoration of the London’s Shad Thames area - a historic riverside area on London in the vacinity of Tower Bridge - that also comprises the Design Museum.

His interest in cooking prompted him to open several restaurants including Orrery, Mezzo, Soup Kitchen, Blueprint Café, Quaglino’s, Pont de la Tour, Butler’s Wharf Chop House, Alcazar, The Zinc Bar, Bibendum, Bluebird, etc. in London as well as in other countries. For his contribution, CatererSearch, the website of the Caterer and Hotelkeeper magazines, named Conran the most influential restaurateur in the UK.

Conran has also written many informative books, mostly on interior design. He published his first book ‘The House Book’ in 1974. Followed by its success he wrote a succession of other design books. Conran then entered into a joint venture with Octopus Books to make an assortment of books on interior design under the name ‘Conran Octopus’ in September 1983. The books covered a wide range of topics ranging from home décor and cooking to gardening. His writings include The Essential Garden Book, Easy Living, Terence Conran on Design, Classic Conran, Small Spaces, Terence Conran on Restaurants, etc.

Conran’s contribution to architecture and interior design has won him many awards. He was knighted in the year 1983. He received the Prince Phillip Designers Prize for his lifetime achievements in design. Conran currently serves as the Provost of the Royal College of Art.