Pret a Manger

Opposite the tube station and on the corner with Minories, Pret a Manger had acquired the EAT unit next to their own smaller store, and appointed Dover as technical designers to combine the two to make one much larger store. Both traded on the Ground floor and had their kitchens in the basement.

 

Our measured survey revealed that the EAT basement had a complicated layout including  a walled-in disused staircase. This, combined with the curved shape of the building on the corner really tested our survey skills! While the EAT basement was large and meandering, the Pret one was narrow and a real squeeze.

 

Work began in the closed EAT, and the Pret, which remained open for business as usual, was rearranged overnight to prepare it for the moment when the dividing wall was to be removed. 

 

Three weeks into the site works we discovered that the two stores were on slightly different Ground floor levels - the EAT was higher than the Pret - and this meant a rapid re-design to accommodate the ramp needed to access the toilet suite. Fortunately, the basement levels were just a few millimetres different.

 

The job took an unusually long 12 weeks to complete, partly due to some issues with the lease, but given the complications of the building, and the fact that the Pret store remained trading for 11 of those weeks, it was a credit to the contractors who delivered a quality finished product which was an immediate success with its customers who enjoy the improved service speed and comfortable seating area. In the basement, the kitchen heroes expanded with relief into their new spacious work place.

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Dover Design believes creating effective design is key to commercial success, and strives to incorporate this fundamentally in their Interior design service which covers all sectors of hospitality design; Bar design, Restaurant design, QSR, Cafe Design and Hotels.