The New Haldane Showroom in Cape Town

WORDS Steve Smith PHOTOS Mickey Hoyle

South Africa’s design maverick Haldane Martin, the creative force behind the Haldane brand, has just opened a new studio and showroom together with his partner in work and life, Danielle.

Located on one of the wide boulevard spokes attached to Cape Town’s Salt River Circle, the new Haldane showroom is the perfect representation of the brand. Like the furniture created by one of the mavericks of South African design, it’s a thoroughly contemporary re-interpretation of an old space.

Formerly a two-story steel engineering business, the 1920s-era building now features a single-volume open-plan layout with three large front-facing windows that allow natural light to stream into the atmospheric space. And given that the Haldane range now focuses on outdoor furniture, the cavernous, conservatory-like space filled with beams of sunlight is as good as an indoor environment can get when displaying outdoor ranges.

We spoke to Haldane Martin and his partner Danielle to find out more about how they found this beautiful space.

✖ What prompted the move from your previous space?

Danielle: “We outgrew our former studio – a Victorian church hall-turned-home in Roodebloem Road in Woodstock. What had started as a quirky work-from-home space had developed through the years into our furniture studio headquarters. But as our business flourished and our team grew, we needed a larger space to put down our roots – and our boxes and tools and many, many beautiful chairs!”

✖ How did you find the building?

Haldane: “We hunted high and low. We looked at buying a plot of land as well as at building something completely new; we considered moving the showroom part of our business into a slick-lick space and splitting our customer-facing team away from the nitty-gritty of production. As we went through this process, our needs became clear: we wanted the team to stay together – and we needed a showroom at the front, a warehouse at the back, drive-in access, and ample natural light. En route to dinner one evening, Danielle spotted a huge black-and-white Ryan Joffe ‘for sale’ sign. We pulled over at 57 Salt River Road and gave him a call.”

✖ What was the clincher? What made you decide this was the right space for the new showroom

Danielle: “When viewing the building, Haldane asked whether we could bash a hole in the ceiling to see what we were working with. We climbed the ladder to poke our heads through the ceiling; one by one, we came down that ladder with eyes like saucers. The hole in the boards revealed an enormous untouched cavity with clerestory windows. We knew instantly this was the space we needed. Our outdoor furniture collections have room to breathe here, surrounded by foliage and patio-like finishes such as clay brick paving, and greenhouse typologies like steel and glass.”

✖ Tell us about the building’s provenance, and what structural changes you made.

Haldane: “The building had gone through a bad reno in the 1980s, which completely robbed it of its beauty. It originally housed Consani Engineering, a company that works with steel on an industrial scale. We managed to unearth voluminous spaces supported by structural steel, which had been hidden by the dropped office ceilings. The height of the original steel windows on the facade had been bricked up, and replaced with a long, low aluminium shopfront window. The real gem was discovering the south-facing clerestory windows, which let in a lot of soft natural light without glare or heat. We replaced all the grubby windows with fluted glass, and re-opened the seven-metre-tall ones on the front facade.”

✖ How did you go about the redesign? Did you do it yourselves, or did you work with an architect?

Danielle: “With a tight budget and an even tighter timeline, Haldane did all the renovation design, working with landlord Ryan Joffe and an impressive roster of local tradesmen to bring the building to its former glory – with an on-brand outdoor twist, of course.

“Our friend, architect Jon Jacobson, shared his expertise with us informally; his input was invaluable. He encouraged us to choose flooring that resonates with us, and to be our bold selves when it came to colour. He also resolved the awkward steep stairs at the entrance, suggesting a gently sloping ramp that acts as a welcoming threshold, leading our customers past the vast shopfront windows. Today, laden with cacti, the entrance sets the tone for the entire showroom experience, separating the calm oasis within from the hustle of Salt River Road.

“One of Haldane’s favourite features is the industrial-style vertical bifold security gate that doubles as a cantilevered roof over our front door, which he designed himself. It was made by Italian engineer and master craftsman Iliano Tavasci.”

✖ And the interior design and layout – who did that?

Haldane: “Danielle and I have a hands-on approach to everything we do. I designed the layout and interiors, from the lighting to the positioning of potted plants, while Danielle refined the colour palette, textures and finishes. Our concept revolved around two main elements – space and natural light (the ultimate luxury). Simple finishes in calming colours let the spaciousness and natural light be the heroes.

“Because this is a physical manifestation of our brand, we aimed to create a large-scale environment that is beautiful yet humble, with generous proportions and a free-flowing atmosphere. We opted for rows of Indigenus planters to separate the studio and showroom instead of walling it off.”

✖ Are there any new ranges we can look forward to seeing in the coming months?

Danielle: “With space to grow, we definitely have a few new designs in the pipeline. Our Galapagos outdoor kitchen island is set to launch in spring, plus new (sofa) additions to the Contour collection, and the Dombolo coffee tables. And Haldane is always obsessively designing new chairs…” | haldane.co.za

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