Hiring an interior designer, architect and construction company to come in and do a full redesign of a retail bakery may or may not make sense. If it does make sense and falls within the budget, then make a go of it, but if it doesn’t, owners can still look to design trends and find something to add that works for them.
Five Trends
Opinions among designers vary, but some trends seem to transcend. According to an article in The Wall Street Journal this year, many designers agree on trends that continue to work for interior design. A retail bakery could affordably incorporate any one or more of these into the existing design scheme for some added flair without a full, and expensive, redesign.
Mixed metals, rather than matching the color of every metal in the room, shows some risk and is more stylish, says New York designer Thom Filicia. Los Angeles designer Jamie Bush agreed, saying he is no longer interested in matching every metal finish in a single room: “It’s too staged.” Warm metals like copper and rose gold go particularly well with a cooler metal like silver, says London designer Kelly Hoppen.
For 2015 the go to color for designers remains navy blue. The main reason designers gravitate toward the dark shade is its ability to work well with other colors. The versatility makes it a great choice for ease of use, but still portrays style. It works especially well with pinks, creams, grays and corral.
Visually fluid and irregular patterned rugs work well in adding a break grid shaped room layouts. Perhaps in a seating area or right in front of a case, these rugs give the bakery and café an artistic feel, as well as a warmer, homier feel.
Smoked glass gives an otherwise typical and mundane piece of material some flavor. Bakeries can use this around the bakery, but it’s wise to keep the cases and doors with product behind them clear. Partitions or design elements outside of product storage are fair game. “Strike a tension between raw and refined, masculine and feminine,” says Los Angeles designer, Kelly Wearstler.
Commercial spaces lend themselves to indoor/outdoor tiles. Similar to the visually appealing rug, a graphically strong tile adds pop to a traditionally utilitarian floor. There is no reason a bakery can’t be a place that uses interior design to welcome customers with a visual appeal that complements the comfort food a shopper comes there to purchase. It doesn’t have to be the whole floor; just a nice medallion in the middle will convey the mood.
Home décor trend for 2016
Use these trends as jumping off points and inspiration for next year’s updates and design changes to your retail space. Color expert Maria Killam shares what she learned at the High Point Market trade show this year.
- Texture is in. Killam talks about faux fur, but it might be best to keep that out of the bakery. There are plenty of other textures, such as fiber weaves that will work.
- Florals are back. Florals and dark florals are of course reinterpreted so that we'll love them again.
- Dramatic Color is back. Painting a room black might sound like it'd be a cave, but it can be glamorous, modern, and sophisticated.
- Blue is in. Navy is a best seller right now, as are indigo and denim shades. We've been decorating with turquoise for a long time now, so all these stronger shades of blue seem fresh and new.
- Pink is in. Pink and its many different shades seem to still be favorites.
- Gold is in. Copper is here as well but it doesn't go with everything so it will always be on the fringe.
