Sir Terence

The world lost a legend on September 12, 2020. Sir Terence Conran, the British icon who was a trailblazer in affordable modern design among dozens of other accomplishments, died at the age of 88. This was the man who taught us that good design is not just an activity, it is the product of that activity. He opened the first Habitat store in the 1960’s and brought the chain to New York as Conran’s Shop in 1977. He was knighted by the queen, in part, for bringing both fine and regional dining to England. At the heart of everything he did was the belief that good design improves the quality of people’s lives. Appropriately, he is credited with coining the expression ‘lifestyle’.

I came across his work as a young adult, frustrated with what little was available to decorate my home in the 70’s. I wanted a clean modern look, but the stores only had mass produced, traditional furniture. I wanted affordable good design, but in order to even see good design one had to hire a decorator and be taken as a guest to a design center stocked with furniture that was far from affordable. Then in 1980, I went to New York for a month to train as a stockbroker. Walking the streets of the city, I stumbled on the Conran Shop, a 40,000 square foot retail store offering everything I ever dreamed of. Modern, knock down furniture that could be shipped and then re-assembled, and all the decorative accessories that you could ever want to go with it. There was cookware, service ware, towels, bed linens, draperies and wall art, all with contemporary color schemes. And the prices were reasonable. Later I decorated an entire bedroom for one of my children, furniture, bed linens and window coverings, by mail order from Conran’s. I devoured his books—The House Book, The New House Book, On Design, The Kitchen Book—there are over 30.

Terence Conran also repurposed unused properties into popular shopping and dining areas. One of his earliest was the old Michelin Building in London, now home to popular retail and dining spaces with a Conran’s Habitat shop and his restaurant Bibendum in the mix. The Orrery Restaurant was born from an old 19th century stable. A later project was Butler’s Wharf on the Thames near the Tower Bridge. This once decrepit property is now a string of popular shops and restaurants, each having a regional theme, with apartments above. He lived in one of them for a time. The first Design Museum was also located at the wharf, but one of his last projects was the opening of a new Design Museum on Kensington High Street in London. 

Here’s the best part, when my daughter went off to college at New York University in 1989, a brother and sister from England came to visit and stayed a few weeks. One day Sage was walking down the street with her new friend, Ned, when he pointed and said, “That’s my father’s shop.” Sage looked at him and asked, “What is your last name?” to which Ned replied, “Conran.” Sage exclaimed, “Your father is my mother’s favorite person!” The next year Sage took a semester abroad in London, and she and Ned fell in love. A few years after that the two married. Following at least partly in father’s footsteps, they now own El Camion, a popular Mexican food restaurant in the Soho theatre district of London. They have been married 23 years and have five wonderful children, my grandchildren—Finbar, Sapphire, Cosimo, Bear and Woodrow and great grand, Tallulah. The creative genes run strong. 

We will, all of us, miss Sir Terence.