#scandispotlight Layered Lounge

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For our Christmas brand story, editor Jen heads to Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire, to chat to the founder of Layered Lounge, Suzy Humphreys

From dining room to two warehouses, Layered Lounge has grown considerably since its launch in 2017. Based in Gerrards Cross, just a stone’s throw from founder Suzy Humphreys’ home, you’ll find a small but close-knit team, which includes Suzy’s husband Paul as CFO and her right-hand-woman Liz Hanlon (ex-artistic director at The White Company) as creative director. Editor Jen finds out more…

Take us back to the beginning…

With an entrepreneurial father, it was always my desire to start my own business. Having renovated several properties in London, a passion for interiors developed yet I always found it difficult to source pieces to furnish them. It felt like there was a distinct lack of affordable, good-quality items with a design that was modern but would stand the test of time. So Layered Lounge initially launched in 2017 with my friend, Lou. We ran the business from my dining room, filling every nook and cranny with stock, but went our separate ways in 2020 as she decided to focus more on her family. We’re still great friends and she is a regular shopper with us still!

We outgrew the house quickly thereafter and moved into our first warehouse in June of that year and, at that point, Paul took the plunge to join me as a partner in the business. A year later we outgrew that space and took on an additional warehouse opposite, which really enabled us to start designing and sourcing our own products. After a year of moving, we needed yet more space so took on warehouse number two and Paul became CFO. The business has gone from strength to strength, as has our passion for building a recognisable brand.

What’s different about Layered Lounge? What’s its style ethos?

Affordable luxury is at the heart of what we do but within the constraints of a more pared-back, relaxed vibe. Scouring the globe for traditional makers and artisans, we like to build on long-term relationships with suppliers who really are experts in their field.

We are all about layers, hence the ‘Layered’ part, and relaxed living, hence ‘Lounge’. Soothing colour palettes, which form a base for overlaying accents of seasonal colours, feature highly on our list and are combined with an abundance of texture. We also love to work with an array of materials.

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Where do you find your inspiration?

Travel – I’m lucky enough to have spent over 40 years of summer holidays on the Algarve coast of Portugal. That rustic coastline of warm sandstone and rich azure sea still captivates me as much now as it did when I was a child.

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What’s next for Layered Lounge?

A physical store is definitely on the agenda, but that will take some time. In the meantime, we are working on a showroom at the warehouse. We have also just launched our first catalogue, and our new furniture collection. The pieces already feature heavily in my home – that’s a perk of the job after all!