Joel Schmied might have come to Australia for love 20 years ago, but he brought with him an address book full of premium Italian design manufacturers and a desire to open his own interiors business. He’d done a multi-faceted, decade-long apprenticeship of sorts in the town of Zug, in his native Switzerland, starting out as a cabinetmaker installing high-end brands before rising through the ranks and adding project management and sales to his CV. It’s this integrated skillset that is a key part of the Pure Interiors story. 

“The approach we have, the way we design, the way we work, the level of care to support the installation and delivery, is very European,” says Schmied. “I would say it’s probably part of our success as well, when it comes to having products that are very technical and need a good installation service, not just the selling of the product. The knowledge about how to actually work with the product to then have a satisfied client at the end. We have that knowledge and that we have that care.”

It’s a level of knowledge and care which is sought out by his local clients and expected from the international brands he represents. Pure Interiors is a flagship showroom for Arc Linea, Rimadesio and Antonio Lupi, and if you visit them in their new digs you’ll also find Lema, Cea and Roda. With the relocation to larger premises in Sydney, and the set-up of their first Melbourne space, Pure Interiors had the opportunity to showcase the range of another preferred partner in V-ZUG.

“V-ZUG resonates for us because I lived for 12 years next to its factory pretty much in Zug and I know a lot of people that work there,” says Schmied. “So there is definitely a personal connection to the brand. I love the simple, pared-back aesthetics. And it is a long-lasting product. They’re investing into these products not in the same way as a lower level brands would where, you know, they last a certain time, and then they will be gone, and you have to replace it, and it creates all this waste. So V-ZUG is long-lasting investment into a brand that has great support for the next 10 to 20 years.”

Schmied cites V-ZUG’s Gourmet Academy events and demonstrations as another point of difference which attracts prospective buyers, in addition to the brand’s superior sustainability credentials, ease of use and enduring visual appeal. The synergies between the two companies and the way their products complement each other is further evident in the elegant and serene spaces that have become Pure Interior’s signature look.

“We like a calm, simple aesthetic; we are not the super colourful people,” says Schmied. “We like timelessness. We love textiles, texture, we love touch and feel materials. We love working with high quality materials. Our clients say that we have really well-resolved details, finished to a very, very high level, because we are watching all the processes and the finishes in our builds, we can really control the outcome of all the details, and we put a lot of value to that. And are there a lot of architects out there, they go to a great extent to do that as well.” 

The company services both private residential clients and the A&D community with its end-to-end process and highly-personal approach. In Melbourne Pure Interiors collaborated with Travis Walton Architecture for the Armadale premises, where manager Jason Lamberti is a consummate host and every ready to point out the subtle details and functions of the brands on display. Lamberti says that Australian design sensibilities are very strong, and while there are some differences in lifestyle between Europe and Australia, the kitchen is still a focus of activity and that the domestic market is increasingly looking for quality and longevity.

“The kitchen is the heart of the home, that’s where we start and then the home will flow on from there,” says Lamberti. “And whether we’re working with a private client or a designer, the journey starts in the kitchen and then they work to the other brands that we have.”

Seamlessly integrated into the Arc Linea kitchen in the new showroom is V-ZUG’s new Excellence range, including FullFlex Induction Cooktop with Teppan Yaki Plate, CombiStean Oven, Combair Pyrolytic Oven, Warming Draw, Integrated Upright Supreme V6000 Freezer and 72 bottle built-in Supreme V6000 WineCooler. Lamberti’s appreciation of design excellence at his fingertips is clear.

“The functionality of V-ZUG’s products is so intuitive and easy – it just works really well,” says Lamberti. “[As well as] high ecological credentials and healthy living, I think it’s just a part of what the Australian lifestyle is now.”

V-ZUG
vzug.com

Pure Interiors
pureinteriors.com.au

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