Discover & Deliver Interview

I am meeting today with Isabel Rutland, the Founder of Discover & Deliver at their headquarters full of energy and personality where a wonderful Labrador called Molly greets you as soon as walk in.

 

 

The concept is genius — you spend a night in a beautifully-designed hotel or enjoy a nice meal in a hip & stylish restaurant and you see a piece of furniture you like, but don’t know who it is by or where to get it from. Well this is exactly where Discover&Deliver come in: they feature a bunch of the most gorgeous hotels and restaurants from around the world and a carefully curated edit of furniture in each place. There are many nice things about browsing their website, but one that is particularly appealing from a furniture perspective is the sheer range and the undoubted good taste, as all the pieces have been specified by leading interior designers for spectacular hotel and restaurant projects.

 

Tell me a bit about yourself:

Sure. Well I can tell you that I broke the first rule of entrepreneurialism by starting Discover&Deliver — that is diving into something I knew absolutely nothing about — furniture and design. But it has been fascinating and invigorating and has given me a totally new lease of life. Before starting D&D I worked for a private equity firm, investing in small businesses. I am an accountant by training.


What is your favourite material:

Difficult one. I have lots of favourites. However I am always particularly taken with contrasts — so something luxury with something earthy, like linen and silk or linen and velvet. De le Cuona, whose cushions we sell, are a particularly good exemplar of this

 

 

de Le Cuona soft furnishings – Cushions available on Discover & Deliver

 

 

La Fibule ‘Carol’ Light

 

Favourite fashion brand:

I am a very Ralph Lauren girl – preppy blazers, shirts and belts. I love the whole Ralph Lauren look – clothing and home alike.


As you seeing any trends in furniture at the moment:

Lots of fashion collaborations which is exciting. Rick Owens has designed some amazing pieces, which we are totally lusting after. Dianne von Furstenburg has done some amazing rugs for the The Rug Company, which are in Claridges. You may have seen them in the current TV series. We sell these on our website.

 

 

Diane Von Furstenberg for the Rug Company

 

So what would be you piece of advice to a product designers. What is missing in the market at the moment?

Wardrobes! I don’t want a fitted wardrobe — I want to buy a beautiful free standing one that I can keep for the rest of my life. I have resorted to getting an antique one, which I am very pleased with. The contemporary choice is fairly limited.


How do you see your business 5 years from now?

Still dedicated to our core values which are about originality and exclusivity and bringing good design to everyone in an easy-to-assimilate manner.

 

What is selling like hot cakes at the moment?

Sergio Rodrigues chairs! People love the Diz Chair and the Kilin Chair (as seen in Belgraves). They are beautiful and timeless.

 

 

Sergio Rodrigues’ Diz Chair

 

What is the advantage of hiring an interior designer, if any?

If you can afford an interior designer then I would strongly recommend one. They give you access to their broader knowledge base in terms of what is available. A good interior designer is like the director of an orchestra – tying together all the disparate elements of a house to give it an underlying theme, yet allowing each room to express itself.

 

What are you really proud of about your company?

Our originality.

 

Would you recommend a career change to others?

Definitely! It is very invigorating. I enjoy working for myself and seeing the result of hard work.

 

What is your favourite dish?

I don’t know about dish, but I love Yotam Ottolenghi’s food and his restaurant NOPI (the interior is also very cool and we also sell the tables, chairs and lights from there).

 

NOPI – Soho – http://www.nopi-restaurant.com/

 

What is your favourite toy?

I don’t have one because my favourite thing outside of my husband is my dog!

 

THANK YOU VERY MUCH ISABEL!

 

You can visit Discover & Deliver here!

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