Philippe Starck grew up in interior design and among other things created a totally new hotel image. Together with the french designer Andrée Putmann, he was at the beginning of the 90's the main spirit for the first design hotels of Ian Schrager. With its fancy style, a new generation of hotels were created, with an aesthetic message that up until now concentrates only on the essential things. Also with the foundation of YOO (1999) he is now systematically spreading his concept of comfortable living throughout the world. In cooperation with locally based real estate companies, luxury apartments in city locations are being developed and marketed.  Philippe Starck is responsible for the branding, and conceptual design of the apartments.

 

Following London, New York, Hong Kong and other world cities, the subsidiary YOO Germany will now develop further branches in Hamburg, Berlin, Cologne and Düsseldorf. The first apartment building will be built as part of the new harbour city development directly behind the old office buildings (Kontorhäuser) of the ‘Speicherstadt’ in Hamburg. The five-storey development at the Dalmannkai with 60 exclusive designer apartments will be completed in 2007. The showroom was opened in September with Philippe Starck and many other prominent guests present.

 

The Hamburg offices of SHEW (north wing, corner building) and the Berlin offices of Leon, Wohlhage, Wernig (east wing) were responsible for the design of the façades of the L-shaped building. The interior is the responsibility of Philippe Starck. He will design all the communal areas such as the lobby, halls and the huge recreational area, as well as the floor and wall coverings and the lay-outs of the bathrooms. There is a choice of four basic interior design concepts: classic, culture, nature or minimal, and a great variation in materials, colours and furniture. But there is just one thing that all the four designs have in common: fittings by Axor.