Wrenn Associates specialises in the interior design of luxury hotels, restaurants, commercial offices and upmarket retail outlets, and has completed many prestigious projects in the UAE. The firm is now looking at widening its business horizon.

Wrenn Associates, set up in the UK in 1978, opened its Dubai branch in 1993 to directly serve clients in the UAE and Gulf region. The company currently employs within its design organisation a total of 30 designers and support staff in its London and Dubai offices. Wrenn Associates has worked with almost all major hotel chains around the world, with projects completed across Europe, the Middle East, and the Gulf .

"There is still a lot of work in the UAE but we are also branching out into other geographical areas," says general manager Mark J Young. "Most of our clients want designers who have wide international experience, but they also want them with a local base and available for solving site problems at a moment's notice.''

"Understanding the particular needs of clients and being flexible is the key to success. It is amazing how different each client's approach is," says Young. "We visit international furniture and lighting exhibitions every year to keep our library of international sources current and to ensure our design presentations include the best available merchandise world-wide," says Young. "We have worked in many countries and have become familiar with the craftsmen and artisans. We have used this experience to full effect in the hotels we have designed."

The company prides itself not only in its design innovation but also in its technical ability. "This we feel is very important in order to ensure our design ideas are built to the best quality, wherever the project is in the world," he says.

Concept design is Wrenn's forte and this first stage of the project involves working with the hotel management including the food and beverage (F&B) department.

"The best designs come from working closely with the hotel", he says. "It is vitally important that we are aware of new trends coming into the hotel market and work closely with our clients to keep them ahead in the market place. Our international exposure and offices in London coupled with a well travelled multi-national design team greatly helps in this regard".

On design, he says: "Our style ranges from classic elegance, which lasts well throughout the world, through to more contemporary themes required by certain clients. The important thing is the quality of approach to solving the particular design problem whilst achieving commercial success for our clients,"

Young believes that the Dubai market is full of potential. "There are still many newbuilds and refurbishments coming up. Even some hotels built just five years ago are looking to refurbish in order to stay competitive in a market where there are many choices for both the business and leisure traveller whose expectations are always on the increase".

"We have a strong base here with a well established design team and are looking at other GCC countries and Arab states such as Egypt, Lebanon and Syria to expand our market. Iran is also an area with huge potential and the recent political movements should help bring stability to the international business community which in turn will generate the need for top quality hotels," he says.

One of Wrenn's recent high-profile projects is the Al Maha Desert Resort in Dubai owned and managed by Emirates. The firm undertook the interior design of all the guest suites and public areas for the UAE's first eco-tourism project which is hidden away amid the splendour of the desert. Having been responsible for the interior design of the original JW Marriott Hotel in Dubai, Wrenn Associates was also commissioned for all the interiors of the recent major extension, whose facilities now rank amongst the best in Dubai, particularly for the discerning business traveller.

Some of the other projects completed in Dubai by Wrenn Associates include the Hyatt Regency, Sheraton Deira, Jebel Ali Hotel & Golf Resort, Oasis Beach Resort and The Pyramids, with Hilton Abu Dhabi, Al Hosn Plaza and the Sands Residence Hotel in Abu Dhabi, and Hotel Inter-Continental Muscat in Oman.

The projects under way in which Wrenn Associates is involved include the Four Points Sheraton in Abu Dhabi, Four Points Sheraton in Sharjah, Towers Rotana Hotel on Dubai's Shaikh Zayed Highway, and the Sheraton Hotel & Towers on the Dubai Creek.

Further afield are exciting projects in Baku, Azerbaijan; Beirut, Lebanon; Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt: Doha, Qatar; and Karachi and Lahore in Pakistan.