The Whiteley in London gets a fresh start with a design-led luxury transformation

'A nice apartment on its own doesn’t cut it anymore,’ says London-based property developer Alex Michelin. ‘The consumer is so savvy now with social media; everyone sees everything. Property is less location-specific, more lifestyle-driven. You have to place-make, create an environment that says to people: ‘This is how I want to live my life.’ 

The Whiteley: leading a Queensway regeneration

This year, Michelin and his firm friend and like-minded developer Marcus Meijer unveil The Whiteley, where the lucky few will certainly want to live their lives. Founded by draper William Whiteley in 1911, Whiteleys was an opulent emporium that rivalled Selfridges and Liberty. Its majestic internal staircase was modelled on Milan’s La Scala, and its slogan ‘everything from a pin to an elephant’ drew shoppers from all over London. But it failed to keep up with its competitors, and when Michelin and Meijer bought it in 2013, Whiteleys was a tired mall of broken escalators and now-defunct chain stores.

Since then, chilly winds have blown across London, bringing Brexit, lockdowns and a cost of living crisis. But the forward-thinking pair have weathered the storms and created leading communal and residential spaces that people love – think Borough Yards and Twenty Grosvenor Square by Finchatton (the development company Michelin co-founded 22 years ago before setting up his new venture, Valouran, in 2023 with Matthew Robertson).

The Whiteley has 139 private apartments (studios cost £1.4m, penthouses upwards of £40m) and London’s first Six Senses hotel, with 110 rooms, 14 serviced apartments and a spa, gym, indoor pool, and padel and tennis courts. The ground floor will host 20 new retailers and restaurants. Instead of the bland high street staples of the past, it will feature Japanese patisseries and art galleries.

This carefully curated blend is based on a deep understanding of the demographic and its aspirations, and it is what keeps Meijer and Michelin ahead of their rivals. ‘Bayswater is not like Mayfair, where it’s all about how much gold is on the chandelier,’ says Michelin. ‘It’s artists, musicians, creative people who want to do yoga, go kite surfing and live a healthy and happy family life.’

Foster + Partners won the competition to renovate the Grade II-listed landmark. ‘We wanted to keep it British, and Norman had the most deliverable, most efficient design,’ says Meijer, who has worked in real estate investment for almost 30 years. He currently heads up London-based Mark and is working with Italian architect Renzo Piano on a new waterfront district in Monaco.

The architects’ eco credentials were also a draw. There’s no plastic in the building, all water is recycled, the roof is fitted with photovoltaic panels, and biophilic design features throughout. Sustainability is paramount. Michelin says: ‘When I started out 21 years ago, no one asked about sustainability. Now, every conversation is about how green a scheme is.’

Meanwhile, The Whiteley may be a quintessentially British building, created by a leading British architect, but the interiors of the first show apartment have a definite transatlantic twist, thanks to US designer Kelly Behun. Having run her studio in New York for more than two decades, Behun is well versed in cultivating the sort of SoHo penthouses and Fifth Avenue apartments that will appeal to The Whiteley residents.

With pastel hues, bespoke rugs and specially commissioned artworks, the three-bedroom, £12.5m apartment reflects a certain energy that feels fresh in this old-school part of London. The interiors are colourful (but not too colourful), quirky (but not too quirky) and sumptuous, always sumptuous.

‘The interiors are inspired by the building’s illustrious past, as well as its surroundings,’ says Behun. ‘The Whiteley’s proximity to Hyde Park played a key role in the overall colour palette.’ She selected a mix of rich golds, lush greens and dusky roses, and incorporated many handmade and bespoke pieces, as well as her latest collaborations with the likes of The Invisible Collection.

Artworks, such as a pastoral-themed mural by Behun’s studio and Brooklyn-based scenic backdrop painter Sarah Oliphant, evoke a connection to the outdoors. For Michelin and Meijer, Behun was an obvious choice. ‘The sheer grandeur and history of The Whiteley make it unique,’ says Meijer. ‘We had to appoint a designer who celebrated that and Kelly’s designs are always mindful of a building’s setting, views and context.’ The apartment is bathed in natural light, which streams in through huge heritage windows, and its soaring ceilings create a grandeur rarely found in the heart of the city.

What do the pair say to the naysayers who cry that London doesn’t need any more luxury developments? Michelin says, ‘London has always had luxury housing – as have all great cities of the world. This is part of what makes these places so fantastic because the wealth drives so much investment into arts and culture.’ He adds that, post-Brexit, ‘London is a difficult place to do large-scale projects, which is why The Whiteley is so popular. We should be actively encouraging this kind of investment – most cities in the world are desperate to take London’s crown.’ 

A year before opening, 60 per cent of the apartments in The Whiteley had been sold, mainly to downsizers from Notting Hill, Kensington and Bayswater eager to swap their seven-storey houses for lateral living. And its popularity is not just down to a sensitive renovation; the landmark building is the cornerstone of a £3bn regeneration of Queensway. With exciting new shops and restaurants, public art projects, wider pavements, single-lane traffic and new gates into Hyde Park coming soon, Queensway is set to become a destination once more. William Whiteley would surely be proud. 

A version of this story appears in the January 2024 Next Generation Issue of Wallpaper*, available in print, on the Wallpaper* app on Apple iOS, and to subscribers of Apple News +. Subscribe to Wallpaper* today!

kellybehun.com

thewhiteleylondon.com

valouran.com

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