It is rightly said when innovation and ingenuity entwine with meticulousness and devotion, magic is sure to happen. This being his philosophy, Mr.Hemil Parikh, founder of Elysium Abodes LLP, aims to offer a holistic design solution through his constant endeavours. Based out of Mumbai, he attained his degree from Pune and Masters from Kingston Business School, London.
- With the ease of lockdown restrictions, how is the domain of interior design planning to retool to the current scenario?
The ease of restrictions will enable most designers to witness a future full of opportunities. While things have returned to normalcy, uncertainty regarding the future still persists. The design community is struggling with comprehending on how to decode the impact of their work to a dollar amount that reverberates with their target consumers. Post-pandemic consumption looks hopeful with things gradually starting to calm down. The industry has witnessed a pent-up demand for design services and there will be an increase in purchasing once the economy is completely back to normal. With buyers comprehending the importance of home ownership, they would be keen on investing in residences more than ever but with wellness being the centre stage of their design preference. Designers are adapting to their requirements by designing urban sanctuaries where-in mental and physical well-being are at the crux of the design process.
- How can having on board an end-to-end service provider who takes ownership for all the work executed in building, help streamline the design process?
Primarily, having on board an end-to-end service provider lends the homeowner with sheer convenience of interacting with a single point of contact right from the planning stage through the home building process and all the way till you finally move in. This enables in closely binding the design thought process with the tangibles and intangibles of the project. This further facilitates in better project planning, financial control and safeguards the project timelines. It is always less cumbersome to communicate face-to-face with an end-to-end service provider since it only helps to comprehend the aspects better by streamlining the entire design process.
- For the architects and design community, post-COVID-19 might mean they have to design for a world that will never be quite the same. How do you plan to go about this?
This is particularly true in Indian cities where projects are contingent on the obtainability of migrant labour. The crisis has been larger for the architect community as it is going to take some time for the workers who went back to their native places to return to the groove of the city. The major factor indicating that the design fraternity will have to retool their design approaches is the changing consumer preferences and client spending. Post-pandemic consumption looks hopeful. There will be a surge in purchasing once the economy is back and people will want to invest in their residences more than ever. The post-COVID consumer will be more attuned to flaws in their homes after spending such a long-time being home-bound. Suddenly the little aspects of home décor and interiors that they have overlooked for years will become big things that must be fixed now and they will be willing to pay a premium to have it done right. An aspect as simple as choosing the colour palette for home interiors too has witnessed a change. Having instilled a feeling of unrest, consumers are now demanding hues that bring about a sense of comfort. It is expected that consumers may want to opt for a biophilic design with hues that mimic the sensation of being amidst nature.
- Kindly explain in detail about your design process and where does your prime focus area lay?
We act as a single point of contact, right from the time of ideation and project conceptualization to the designing of the house. To execute these steps, we collaborate with various architects and designers depending upon the projects language and style. This is followed by preparing a thorough budget proposal and a tentative project schedule. Once we get clearance on the approvals the team goes about project construction, sourcing furniture and home accessories followed by the final stage of project handover to the client.
The company’s prime focus revolves around the design of luxury villas across the country, which can be used as second homes in exotic locations or primary residential spaces for connoisseurs of luxury. Backed by a robust team of skilled engineers, project execution team, skilled labour, advanced machinery and equipment, the company’s strength lies in executing projects across the country. We aim to lend homebuyers a quality product befitting their preferences.
- The concept of ‘Second Homes’ is growing, and the pace will quicken. Throw some light on the same.
The pandemic has altered the short-term investment patterns but has strengthened the avenues for long-term home investment with buyer’s keen on investing in second homes. Second-home markets across the country have seen record seasons for both sales and rentals, and this heightened demand calls for aesthetically designed spaces.
The hope of owning a second home to escape the city life or planning an eventual retirement there were previous buyer aspirations. The outbreak of the global crisis has given rise to a more urgent motivation – emphasis on upholding wellness by choosing to reside in homes away from the contaminated zones is urging buyers to drift towards well-designed second homes in the city or the outskirts. Interior designers and architects are offering second homes equipped with need-of-the-hour features like in-built workstations, stairways, glass-walled rooms, skylights and internal courtyard making second homes an investment-worthy destination.
- The strategic shift in buyer aspirations has led to a heightened demand for aesthetically designed and architecturally defined space? How are you planning to cater to these consumer demands?
The pandemic that left consumers to be home-bound, has made them even more aware of their interior design preferences. The pandemic is gradually shaping the interior design space with consumers demanding architectural elements like creative storage options within their interiors. With people continuing to work from home, the home office trend is driving the interior space. This will demand amplified shared spaces within homes. Due to the pandemic, stylish and ergonomic desk chairs to support the home office trend will become an imperative element in home décor. Open kitchens and large windows allowing natural light to flow in are turning out to be an integral part of interior décor. With wellness being the need-of-the-hour, people are now opting for private exercise spaces like at-home guys within the comfort of their homes.
Interior designers are acclimatizing to the changing buyer preferences to combine physical and virtual environments as per consumer’s demands.
- How do you impact customers through your product offerings?
The company has always enjoyed a healthy customer conversion ratio wherein we uphold close to 75 percent of the projects we bid for. The sole reason behind this growth is that we are very selective about the type and size of projects undertaken by us. In the upcoming years, we further plan to climb the growth ladder by tapping more customers for our design and build services in various country parts. Our major focus for expansion will be on tier II and III cities, considering the increased buying power of consumers in these markets. Taking our product offering on a global level, we are also planning to team up with furniture, lighting, and home decor manufacturers in India and Europe to offer quality products to homeowners.
- What would be the target audience you are catering to?
We majorly cater to aspirant homeowners in tier I and tier II cities who are keen on upgrading their lifestyle by the means of lending a restoration to their spaces or building a new home. We have been closely working with the cities renowned industrialists and professionals keen on investing in vacation homes to escape the cities hustle. We also reach out to a large audience by the means of powerful digital platforms wherein we communicate with the audience on trending industry topics. This helps us to connect with them on a personal level. For the coming years we are targetting Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities as the buying power and aspiration for a better lifestyle in these areas has been growing tremendously.
- Kindly throw some light on the projects that are in the pipeline.
Some of our future projects include a vacation home in Lonavala and Ancestral home in Anand, Gujarat. We are also nearing the completion of luxury vacation homes in Goa and have just finished a second home in Alibaug, villa project in Pune and several apartments in Mumbai & Pune.
