How has Coronavirus Impacted the Design Community?

How has the reality of social distancing affected you and your business operations?

Simon Campbell, managing director, Portview: “While the government remains somewhat ambiguous in regards to the closure of construction sites, we took the precautionary action to temporarily close all of our sites to ensure the welfare of our team and community. We are continuing to work closely with our clients and supply chain to support their needs and advise them of our contingency plans for when we return. In the meantime, our teams are working on the administrative and technical aspects of our projects remotely, whilst we await further guidance from the government on relaxing social distancing measures.

It is regrettable that we are not able to create amazing spaces for a while, but with time, we will again. We look forward to coming back stronger than ever and creating beautiful new spaces that everyone will be able to enjoy with their friends and family so much more. I believe, that if there is one positive thing to come out of the crisis for the industry, it will be a revitalised appreciation of space and an increased appetite for experiential environments that bring people together and enhance their social wellbeing.”

Sophie Stevens, founder & creative director, SGS Design: “Following the initial shock of leaving our lovely Studio our team comprising of 5 designers, procurement manger and myself are now all established at home and working efficiently remotely. We decided to close down the Studio quite early in the gradual lock-down so we had a chance to experiment and make a return visit to collect anything we’d overlooked before it was too late.  Our biggest challenges are partial site closures and reduced or no access to live projects, being unable to visit suppliers (although most have been fantastic and are still working hard to provide everything we need) and no face-to-face contact with clients to share designs and samples for sign-off is tricky.”

Sarah Holey, marketing manager, Parkside Architectural Tiles: “The situation is changing all the time, but at the moment the majority of the Parkside team are working from home, using Microsoft Teams and WhatsApp to stay in touch. Our supply chain has been affected as some factories are currently under production lockdown, although they can still ship stocked product. That said, our sampling department is still able to operate safely, so we are continuing to despatch for now. Our ethos has always been about collaborating with our clients and recent events have made that even more important. We’re focused on staying in touch and supporting our partners, but of course, our number one priority is to protect the wellbeing of our staff.”

Averil Blundell, founder, Averil Blundell Interior Design: “We are lucky that all of our current projects are currently at the initial pre-build stage (although one of our main projects was due to start on site imminently) so although the current situation will likely push back site start dates, the majority of our current work we can do from our computers. The social distancing restrictions do however mean that we aren’t able to meet potential clients to discuss future projects which will also have a knock on effect on our pipeline of projects. The Studio is at my home so we are lucky that we can still get access to our reference library etc without having to travel.”

If you’ve had to work from home, how do you stay motivated / preserve your mental wellbeing?

Simon Campbell, managing director, Portview: “We are in a fortunate position as we have an in-house occupational health nurse who has been brilliant at sending employees daily tips and advice on how to stay motivated and healthy whilst in lock-down. On top of that we have an internal social network called The Hub, where employees have been posting regular photographs of their new exercise routines at home, batch cooking recipes, home schooling timetables and so on, which have really helped to keep the spirts up and maintain a strong team mentality. We’re in the process of populating a designated resource library on The Hub, where employees can access further tips and advice on how to stay healthy, as well as interact with more social activities like virtual ‘Coffee and Catchups’ on Microsoft Teams or take part in creative workshops such as learning calligraphy or guitar.

For me, I think the most important thing is to keep communicating with friends, family and colleagues to help alleviate any anxiety or feelings of isolation. And of course, making the most of your daily exercise!”

Sophie Stevens, founder & creative director, SGS Design: “We have a team meeting every day at 9am on Zoom and run through the day’s work challenges but also check-in on each other’s well-being.  I’ve been so impressed but not surprised by the teams ability to adjust to the new normal and make the best out of a challenging situation. The team has formed a strong professional bond over the years but also enjoy socialising together. We have continued this with Friday cocktail hour and celebrated a staff birthday in our home-made party hats via Zoom.

Professionally it’s also a great time to complete some CPD training, we have all been sharing and exploring the wealth of webinars and interactive learning experiences available via our existing and potential new suppliers.  I have joined a weekly John Cullen lighting webinar and next week we have all been invited to attend a lecture on home cinema and technology.  So plenty of distractions and learning opportunities. Personally I’m enjoying the extra time I have in the morning to fit in a run or an hour on the turbo trainer in the garage – this sets me up perfectly for a constructive day at my desk.”

Sarah Holey, marketing manager, Parkside Architectural Tiles: “I’ve got a comfortable work desk set-up near a window – as tempting as the sofa may be, the resulting backache from being hunched over my laptop is not something I want right now. I make sure I have a proper lunchbreak so that I take time away from my desk and I also find the radio is great for company. Radio X and keeping in touch with colleagues on Teams helps to keep my spirits high.”

Averil Blundell, founder, Averil Blundell Interior Design: “We moved to working from home before the government guidelines came in as I had experienced symptoms after returning from a family skiing holiday. We have been communicating as a team through WhatsApp and Zoom (as well as over email and telephone) so that we can still stay in touch and have face to face conversations. As we are only a small team I think it is easier to adjust to working more on our own than it might be for some larger practices.”

What has been or will be the biggest challenge you or your business will face throughout this uncertain time?

Simon Campbell, managing director, Portview: “The closure of our sites was a huge decision for us and an unprecedented one in our 45-year history. However, we felt that we had a moral and social duty to our employees, clients and community and so for us, it was the right decision to make, albeit the most difficult one. Luckily, our clients have been extremely understanding and, in many cases, have applauded our decision to stand by our values and do what’s right for our people. In the meantime, we continue to support and service the requirements of our clients to the best of our ability and are confident that we will return stronger and more determined than ever before. Together we will help to rebuild the industry – one brick at a time.”

Sophie Stevens, founder & creative director, SGS Design: “The unknown timescale of the shut-down period does hinder our ability to plan cash flow and project management.  We are basing our current projections on being back in the Studio with reduced/no restrictions from beginning of June but we are reviewing this regularly with Government updates. We have adapted our process quickly to ensure we can progress our projects under these circumstances and have maintained close contact with suppliers, contractors on site and our clients, but the indefinite lock-down period is my main concern. Whilst we can work on the ‘paper’ or technical designs for our client projects, there comes a point where we need to able to attend site meetings and visit suppliers to sign-off specification or the project has to be paused.”

Averil Blundell, founder, Averil Blundell Interior Design: “It is difficult to forward plan and know when things will start to happen on site which has a knock-on effect for both this year and next year with our pipeline of projects. For me personally, an additional challenge has been combining working from home whilst also overseeing learning from home for my daughter Matilda.”

What measures have been put place for employees, customers and clients in response?

Simon Campbell, managing director, Portview: “Our office-based staff are continuing to work on the administrative and operational side of the business, however with our projects suspended, our site teams have been furloughed. To compensate for this and alleviate concerns, we are topping up the 80% grant to ensure that all site employees receive their full pay. We are keeping a close eye on events as they unfold and are updating our team and clients as time goes on. One thing we know though is that we have worked too long and hard to build a fantastic team and are determined to keep it that way so we will be in a strong position to rebound when restrictions are lifted.”

Sophie Stevens, founder & creative director, SGS Design: “I think it’s all about clear and regular communication for employees, contractors, clients and suppliers. Plus flexibility and an openness to try different approaches to our normal practice, we have to adapt. We are keeping our clients informed of the work we can complete remotely and agreeing timescales for deliverables as normal.  We have Zoom presentation meetings and regular client calls to provide updates and agree next steps as we go.

We are placing any orders for client purchases with credit card deposits to protect the funds under the Consumer Protection Act 1974 and are in contact with our suppliers for production updates and reassurance. Our procurement manager keeps track on orders and funds daily and where possible has renegotiated our payment terms to make smaller, multiple deposit payments to reduce risk until product is delivered. We have also updated specifications to prioritise UK suppliers where there are issues with imports or significant fluctuations in the foreign exchange rates.”

Sarah Holey, marketing manager, Parkside Architectural Tiles: “We’re obviously doing everything we can to protect our staff and customers and have temporarily closed our showrooms. The team is working from home, so our clients can still get in touch easily and we’re working as well as we can within the limitations placed upon our supply chain. Of course, the situation changes quickly and we must be agile enough to respond, so we are remaining flexible and adaptable.”

Averil Blundell, founder, Averil Blundell Interior Design: “We work closely with Clever Association who put measures in place so that each of the team can access our files and emails remotely from home. We have been liaising with clients and other professionals we are working with on projects by phone and email.  We always try to present all our information in a clear way when communicating information to clients and to the rest of the design team involved in a project so this is more important than ever at this time.”

Have you got any plans to change the way you do business and provide flexibility during this period to keep your business running?

Simon Campbell, managing director, Portview: “As a team of over 100 employees headquartered in Belfast, we are experienced in working remotely and flexibly throughout the UK and Ireland anyway. The processes and protocols we have refined over the years has helped us to navigate the crisis and minimalize disruption to business operations as much as feasibility possible. With company laptops and phones, Microsoft Teams and cloud-based project management and CAD software; employees can access company email securely and communicate remotely with clients, our supply chain and subbies.”

Sophie Stevens, founder & creative director, SGS Design: “Everything has changed as a result of the current situation and flexibility is key to surviving the shut-down period but also bouncing back when we do return to normal. Technology has become a priority in maintaining the business.  We already used Dropbox for all file sharing and in the run-up to the shut-down we ensured all hand-written notes and sketches had been scanned and saved for reference along with photographs of all our live project sample trays.  Zoom was a new world for us all but again we trialled it before the shut-down was activated and knew we had all the technology we needed installed and operational before we had to use it.  I think this was essential to easing us into this new way of working.”

Sarah Holey, marketing manager, Parkside Architectural Tiles: “We’re collaborating much more online with our clients and have increased the social media activity for sales teams. While many designers are working from home, they are still busy on future projects, so we want to make sure we’re there to be involved, support and inspire them. We have sample boxes that were originally produced for office sample libraries, but we’re happy to send these out to home addresses. They are compact, so won’t take up too much space, and can hold ten 10cm x 10cm tile samples.”

Averil Blundell, founder, Averil Blundell Interior Design: “For now we are continuing to work as closely to our normal routine as possible whilst each working from home as this is the most appropriate course of action for our current projects.”

Have you been inspired to help support communities around you?

Simon Campbell, managing director, Portview: “Yes, what really struck us was the critical shortage of PPE equipment facing the frontline services, particularly those caring for the most vulnerable in the community. We were able to help as we had surplus FFP3 dust masks and decided to give 1,800 of them to the Northern Ireland Hospice, whom we had recently donated £43,000 to in memory of a colleague. It was the very least we could do to help and a humbling experience.”

Sophie Stevens, founder & creative director, SGS Design: “A majority of our work is local to us and we have close ties with our local suppliers and trades.  Where we are able to maintain these relationships and support local business activity we are continuing to promote these independent suppliers.”

Sarah Holey, marketing manager, Parkside Architectural Tiles: “I’m already involved with one of my local foodbanks, so continue to help where I can. This has been tricky with the panic buying going on and shortages of essentials like pasta and tinned goods. Hopefully, we’ve seen the end of the panic buying and it will be easier to help those that need support at this stressful time.”

Averil Blundell, founder, Averil Blundell Interior Design: “As I have been self-isolating due to having symptoms, our main way of supporting the local community at this time has been by staying at home to reduce the transmission of the virus.”