Personal Space Reconnaissance Tours

"proach to space planning. Author Robert Lacey in Sotheby's: Bidding for Class writes: Graham Llewellyn [Sotheby’s UK CEO], knew that Alfred Taubman had taken control of Sotheby’s when he glanced out of his office win¬ dow one day and saw the considerable bulk of his new American boss teetering precariously on the roof. Taubman was looking down at the jumble of chimneys and roof extensions that reflected the auction house’s growth over the years. Flow had been the secret of his success in the mall business, and he made the redesign and reordering of New Bond Street’s rabbit warrens one of his first priorities."

"On one of my less acrobatic space-planning tours of the New Bond Street facilities I noticed that there was a little-used storage"

"Cookie Jars and Irises 99 room off the lobby. Although it had a very low ceiling, the space was perfect for a cafe to enliven the lobby and create a more welcoming feel to Sotheby’s historic front door. We raised the ceiling, added a kitchen on the level below the lobby, and installed a motorized dumbwaiter to deliver orders to the cafe. A simple video system al¬ lowed the kitchen and waitstaff to communicate effectively. Shortly before we opened for business, I received a call from a se¬ nior Sotheby’s executive in London. He was nearly hysterical and was concerned that our cafe looked too much like—perish the thought—a French cafe, one you might see on the streets of Paris! That was exactly the look we were after, and I assured him that our cafe would fit right in and be attractive to people from all over the world. And that’s precisely what happened. The Cafe (which is what we unimaginatively named it) was an instant hit. Clients stayed lon¬ ger, staff held small meetings over lunch, visitors stopped in for tea and discovered Sotheby’s for the first time. We introduced a lobster sandwich on brioche bread (a London first) that put our simple but distinctive cuisine on the map."