Latest news from Panaz Hospitality, global manufacturer and supplier of flame retardant contract fabrics.
After 20 years of commuting in and out of central London, Martin and Andrea Anderson had had enough of their corporate lifestyles and decided it was time for a change of pace and a new lifestyle. “Andrea and I had busy sales jobs, travelling frequently and working long hours” says Martin. “We wanted a change of scenery and a new challenge”.
Having spent over five years searching for the perfect business and location they eventually discovered Pitlochry, and Craigatin House & Courtyard. Located just 70 miles north of Edinburgh, Pitlochry is a charming Victorian town encircled by the Highland Perthshire hills with a world famous theatre, two Whisky distilleries and plenty of castles. Martin and Andrea now own and run Craigatin House & Courtyard. Hidden away in secluded wooded grounds, this beautiful early Victorian house has now been transformed into a boutique bed & breakfast, providing a unique blend of the traditional with the luxury of contemporary design. City chic in a rural setting. The individually designed spacious deluxe rooms all have comfortable six foot wide beds and are decorated with stylish fabrics and furnishings. Designs for the rooms were put together by Cottonwood Interior Design using Panaz fabrics. All rooms have large HD LCD TV’s, Freeview and CD/DVD players. There is also free Wi-Fi access in the main house. For special occasions, the luxury suite has all of the above with the addition of a private sitting room complete with ipod docking station, two large LCD TV’s and Bluray CD/VDV player. Since taking over Craigatin House & Courtyard in 2007 Martin and Andrea have won two Tripadvisor Travellers Choice Awards. In 2010 they were voted the Best B&B in Scotland, 3rd Best in Britain and 4th Best in Europe!
The Icon Hotel Luton is a privately owned luxury hotel operated by Franco and Lefi Anacreonte. The opening is in four phases, the first one being in November 2009 followed by the second in December 2009. The final two phases are underway.
Franco and Lefi purchased two buildings which used to house the offices of insurance giant Zurich plc and the former Luton Chamber of Commerce. The buildings had been vacant for some ten years and although adjacent to each other they were not connected. Consequently joining them together proved an enormous technical and structural task. Franco and Lefi's quest was to provide a unique and welcoming ambience. The £6million project commenced in March 2009 and has been furnished in a themed, elegant and inspirational manner. Working with the curtain and furniture suppliers, Panaz were asked to supply a range of fabrics to enhance the bedroom and restaurant areas of the hotel. The Panaz fabrics which were selected for the bedroom areas are Boudoir Red/Gold (curtains), Chic Red/Gold and Canova Red (pillow covers and foot throw). The reverse of Boudoir Red/Gold was used for the cushion covers. The hotel's signature restaurant is aptly named Capello's - both the Greek and Italian word for hat, which Luton is famed for. The Panaz fabrics which have been used in this area are Taffeta Blackout in Claret and Beige. Franco and Lefi have purposely associated themselves with local businesses and engage in sponsoring community events. They aim to be recognised as Luton's best boutique hotel, offering a truly exceptional and unique guest experience at affordable prices.
When Hilton Worldwide unveiled plans to roll out its midscale Hilton Garden Inn brand in Europe, it was clear that the brand, successfully established in the United States for decades, would need to be reengineered to accommodate European design tastes and technical standards.
When it came to developing the furnishing fabrics for the Garden Inn brand, Hilton turned to Panaz, confident in the knowledge that the contract fabric specialists could realise the interior designer’s aesthetic vision with fabrics to meet Hilton’s exacting in-house standards for durability, flame-retardancy and ease of care, as well as European legislative FR requirements; an awareness of purchasing budgets was, of course, another factor to consider. Further confidence was inspired by Panaz’s proven ability to support Hilton’s overseas partners with its multilingual sales team, network of subsidiaries, agents and distributors and long experience of servicing the international hospitality industry.
Working closely with Hilton’s appointed interior designer for the development of the brand, Bevis Design Associates, and with Hilton’s Technical Services team, Panaz developed bespoke contract standard furnishing fabrics in two colour schemes. The two schemes include fabrics for drapes, sheers, upholstered fabric, headboards and scatter cushions. The finalised fabric specifications are issued by Hilton confident in the knowledge that Panaz can offer a high level of service at project level both in the UK and overseas.
The new €660m Frankfurt Airrail development, being developed jointly by IVG Immobilien AG and Fraport AG and scheduled to open in 2010, features the first Hilton Garden Inn in Europe to feature the new brand concept. The 314-room property, , is in a flagship position at one of Europe’s most important transport hubs and as such is a prime location to showcase the new brand concept.
Through it’s German office, Panaz worked with Hamburg-based interior architects JOI Design, who were tasked with project-specific design work such as creation of the public spaces, and through the construction phase continues to work with leading turnkey furnishing contractor, Voglauer GmbH of Austria, who are responsible for the procurement of the thousands of linear metres of fabrics required to fulfil the project.
Said Panaz CEO Tony Attard, “we are proud of our association with Hilton and are privileged to be involved with the new Hilton Garden Inn brand. The Frankfurt Airrail project is testament to our design capability and to the quality of our distribution”.
Warehouse Administrator 
