Devoto Design Interior Contractor: when it pays to have a single point of contact

Devoto Design Interior Contractor: We make custom made interiors. Joinery, upholstery, marble works, solid surface, glass and metal works. We deal with the supply of commercial components and realization of plant and building works. Find out in this short in-depth analysis when having a single provider manage the delivery of all the furniture guarantees homogeneity and harmony to the project.

“Interior contractor” refers to the company or firm that is primarily responsible for making custom furniture and, in addition, is responsible for the overall layout of the spaces starting with:

• COVERINGS
• FINISHINGS
• COMMERCIAL COMPONENTS
• LIGHTING BODIES

A single point of contact for all processes

The mission of an Interior Contractor is to be the single point of contact for the customer. A single interlocutor in charge of the simplification and management of all processes.

A single manager who can take care of completing and finalizing all purchases necessary for the work to be done.

Did you know that the interior contract is a consolidated “formula” that allows you to achieve excellent results in the predetermined time, especially in the field of hotellerie, but not only that? Here are some examples from our direct experience…

Devoto Design Interior Contractor and hotellerie: a winning formula

In our 40 years of experience, we have built more than 40 hotels, hundreds of restaurant and stores

THE “CONTRACT” formula is something we have often applied. The client relies on us to deliver the space in its entirety. “Turnkey”, precisely (Marianna Devoto, Sales Director and Architect). 

If you imagine the composition of a typical hotel room furniture, you can immediately understand the reason why it could be extremely advantageous and productive for the customer to assign the works and purchases to a single subject:

• COVERINGS: carpeting, boiserie, wallpapers
• CUSTOMIZED FURNITURE: closets, nightstands, desks, vanity units, sofas, mirrors, draperies
• COMMERCIAL COMPONENTS: bed, minibar, chairs and armchairs, carpets, bathroom accessories
• LIGHTING BODIES: such as lamps and chandeliers

In our experience as interior contractors we happened to have to deal with exactly these activities. for example in the case of the Palazzo Rhinoceros Fendi in Rome. For this impressive interior renovation project we have, in fact, dealt with:

• PRODUCTION of custom integrated furniture
• PURCHASE OF COMMERCIAL COMPONENTS excluding furniture from the studio of architect Jean Nouvel Design
• WALL AND FLOOR FINISHINGS: paints and resins

Another example is the Hotel Gran Melià Villa Agrippina, for which we not only made custom furnishings such as furniture, curtains, and upholstery, but also coordinated the purchase of numerous commercial components, including tableware for the restaurant.

Not just hotellerie: Devoto Design Interior Contractor retail, food, private house…

In our experience we have found that the formula of interior contract applies to the hotel industry as well as to retail, to food premises but also to private homes.

FOR EXAMPLE I CAN SAY THAT in the food field there are many Interior Contract projects that we have carried out. Especially when we have also taken care of the preliminary design. At that point the client relies entirely on us to take care of the entire space, managing the entire process of implementation and procurement (Marianna Devoto, Sales Director and Architect).

Some examples of heterogeneous Interior Contractor projects followed by our teams?

• MARENNÀ ASSAGGI – food: Preliminary design, constructive design, custom-made furniture, supply of commercial components such as tables, stools and chairs.
• GIOIELLERIA TITTARELLI– retail: preliminary planning, constructive planning, realization of custom-made furniture, coverings, supply of commercial components, messaging (for example: sign)
• CASA O. – residential: constructive design, realization of custom-made furniture, supply of commercial components such as chairs, tables and upholstered furniture.

What it takes to be a good interior contractor

To be a good Interior Contractor, it is essential to apply equally good “Project Management,” i.e., to have excellent “Project Management” processes in place.

BEING AN EXCELLENT INTERIOR CONTRACTOR IS SIMPLE: you just need to be able to keep control of all the custom work and purchases, check procurement and delivery times, establish a logical order of delivery (e.g. coverings first, commercial components last…), manage site logistics, and be able to supervise all the workers and all the work on site, of course. Ah, implicit in all this is that it is essential to keep the client constantly updated and to react promptly to any changes in ideas and project modifications (Marianna Devoto, Sales Director and Architect).

To this we must add that an experienced Interior Contractor has a good network of partners and suppliers, tested and trusted, ready to meet the changing needs of the project and, last but not least, the operational ability to meet the agreed time of realization and delivery.

General contractor or Interior contractor?

We often find in our work that the distinction between “General” and “Interior” contractors is not so obvious. This presumably may depend on the fact that both parties define their work as “contract” and both offer “turnkey” projects. Let’s try to clarify:

• GENERAL CONTRACTOR deals with construction work. For example, demolition, construction, renovation of facades, supply of fixtures, laying of floors, electrical, water, mechanical. In some cases it can also deal with the preparation of interiors by relying on subcontractors. This often happens also in our case when we are contacted by General Contractors who involve us in the realization of the “furniture package” included in projects of real estate restructuring.
• INTERIOR CONTRACTOR, however, is, specifically, the person who takes over the construction work already completed and is responsible for the preparation of the interior.

Devoto Design and General Contractor?

In recent years, our team has also been involved in managing construction and plant works, both structural and renovation works, positioning us on the market, in fact, as a general contractor. Here are just some of the most recent examples:

• POINT OPTIQUE COLMARE (France): demolition, redoing counter walls, false ceiling and partitions, resin floor coating, electrical, plumbing, painting. And custom furniture, of course.
• PIZZERIA ALMABUONA: Preliminary design with redistribution of spaces and building and plant engineering interventions and fitting out of the entire space: from custom-made furniture to lighting fixtures.
• CASA Y: demolition, rebuilding attic, floors, walls and drywall, finishes, fixtures and custom furniture.

TO BE A GENERAL CONTRACTOR also means dealing with and managing many players: structural engineer, plant engineer, construction company, painter, plasterer, in addition to the “usual” partners of interior design such as marble workers, blacksmiths, upholsterers… It’s all about having a proven work methodology like ours, which allows us to coordinate heterogeneous workers, foresee risks and have a problem-solving approach. (Marianna Devoto, Sales Director and Architect).

To learn more

• Palazzo Rhinoceros Fendi > view the project sheet
• Gran Melià Villa Agrippina > view the project sheet
• Marennà Assaggi > view the project sheet
• Gioielleria Tittarelli > view the project sheet
• Optissimo > view the project sheet
• Pizzeria Almabuona > view the project sheet