A Chat with Linda Boronkay: Design Director of Soho House

Linda Boronkay has one of those dream jobs. A job that you can barely imagine exists never mind actually having it. An interior designer who has worked for and with Martin Brudnizki, Tara Bernerd and Tom Dixon and who,  last year, was appointed as Design Director of Soho House.

That means she gets to work on the new houses as they open, as well as refurbish existing clubs, and she has just finished the newly redesigned Kettners as well as the original club at Greek Street, which reopened last month. I met her yesterday at Dean Street to talk all things design and she arrived, apologising in advance for her “site clothes” from White City where the latest members club is set to open in the former BBC Television Centre.

It’s tough to know where to start when you meet someone who has that kind of job (and who is a former fashion model to boot): “When are you resigning and can I have your job seems a little harsh.” But actually, from the design point of view, the first thing I wanted to know was – is it actually a dream job? After all, the houses all have a very distinct look so is there much creative freedom?

Of course it was quite daunting to come on board, she said. Before admitting that the founder Nick Jones, likes to be “very involved”. But, she stressed, it’s a collaborative process and the interior design is driven as much by the need for comfort as the history of the building which is, in fact, the real dictator when it comes to style.

“There needs to be a level of comfort and practicality in each house. I was afraid that I would have to do the same thing again and again but in fact it’s the opposite. It’s incredibly interesting seeing how far we can push.”

In fact Linda had worked for the club before she was appointed to her current job. When she was at Martin Brudnizki, his studio took on Cecconi’s and the Miami Beach club so she was familiar with the look and style already.

“When we begin work on a new building we always start with a conversation,” she said. “We bring in a historian to tell us about the building – as you know with Soho House it’s always about finding the right building for each new club rather than the location. Then we talk about the function of the spaces.

“Then we move onto colours and fabrics and the aesthetics. And Nick might tweak as we go along.”

Kettners was the first French restaurant in London, which the team were keen to reference in the redesign. Then there was the romantic aspect. King Edward VII reportedly entertained his mistress, the actress Lillie Langtry in the private dining rooms, while other famous personalities of their day including Oscar Wilde, Agatha Christie and Winston Churchill all dined here.

“With that history we wanted Kettners to have a French, sexy boudoir feel to it,” said Linda. “That also inspired the choice of artwork as well.”

Art has always been key to the Soho House collections; at the recently opened The Ned, the permanent art collection has 100 paintings- 93 by woman and seven by men which is the inverse of the FTSE 100 gender ratio (it has since changed since but you get the idea).

When it came to Greek Street, which was the first club to open, Linda says the refurbishment was “the scariest”. It needed updating but the members were very attached to it and didn’t want to see huge changes. The resulting scheme has drawn together old memories and new ideas and remains true to the Soho House feel.

And that feel is what so many of you, my readers, and club members long to recreate at home. So what’s the secret? Well, says Linda, it has to be comfortable. It has to have vintage and yes also, even in a domestic setting, she is keen on referencing the history of the building. So in Georgian Greek Street, the doors are painted the same colour as the walls (actually this is a good idea in any period building as it makes the room look larger by blurring the edges but yes, it was originally a Georgian thing).

All the furniture is either made bespoke or bought vintage. Again this isn’t necessarily something you can do yourself, but the idea is to try and create a look that works for you and isn’t just bought wholesale off the peg – as it were.

“When I worked for Tom Dixon we were encouraged to design our own products as well so I have experience in that which has helped with Soho House,” says Linda, who designed the triangle lights in the image above.

Born in Budapest to an architect father and a mother who edited a fashion magazine before moving into buying and selling antiques, Linda’s childhood home was full of vintage furniture and contempory art. And that mix would turn out to be perfect for her later career.

She moved to Paris to study fashion and travelled the world as a model for several years. “I knew I wanted to do interior design but fashion allowed me to travel and see the world so I carried on for a bit longer even though I knew I would end up in interior design.”

Later she moved to London and set up her own practice and the rest as they say is history. Now you can, of course get the Soho House look through their website but does Linda have any more advice? Are there colours or materials she is particularly keen on?

“Well if I was starting Kettners again I would probably do it differently because you are always seeing new colours and fabrics. I love yellows – particularly that olivey yellow and also turquoise and teals. Brass is very Soho House but I am very keen on aged silver.

“I am not against Scandi style and if we opened a house in Stockholm or Copenhagen then that would influence the design but I would say my style has remained true to itself for many years. I am very interested in the influence of fashion and movies on interior design and I am as likely to look through Vogue for inspiration as an interiors magazine.

“I don’t say there are interior design rules but I like to approach a design holistically and look at the building – its history, its function and then the practical and comfortable aspects of what you are trying to achieve. I think it’s very important to integrate architecture and interiors to make a successful scheme.”

And with that she was off. There are houses to do up, schemes to plan and history to learn. A dream job doesn’t mean an easy job.