An experienced commercial interior designer and leader of a 30-person design team. He sat down to discuss his career path, design philosophy, and passion for deeply understanding client needs.

Paul started in architecture but craved more creativity and faster project turnover, so he transitioned to the design and build industry in London. He eventually rose to head designer at Morgan Lovell, overseeing a diverse group across age, gender, and cultural backgrounds.

A key theme Paul emphasises is the importance of inclusivity, feedback, and learning from mistakes. He ensures his team feels empowered to contribute ideas and share knowledge. As Paul says, “understanding a client’s needs and culture is crucial for designing the right office environment.” Considerations like lighting, acoustics, collaboration zones, and quiet areas all play a role.

Paul stresses thoroughly capturing client requirements and visions through the briefing process. As he explains, without asking the difficult questions upfront, you risk misinterpreting needs and falling short of goals. He advises leveraging psychological research on how colors and materials influence emotions when conceptualizing designs. Introverts and extroverts often thrive in different environments.

Regarding sustainability, Paul educates on Bream, LEED and other certifications rather than pushing clients in a direction. His firm has Scar assessors who help projects achieve silver ratings at no extra cost by researching eco-friendly materials.

Paul fondly recalls memorable design projects for an engineering company and Uber’s first London headquarters. Both challenged his creativity without resorting to opulence. Satisfying complex briefs for these discerning clients was hugely rewarding.

After listening to Paul’s insightful experiences, I came away eager to learn more about human-centric commercial design.It was really inspiring to hear about Pauls career insights.

If you want to hear the full conversation click the link below to listen on Spotify.