Conran expands his food empire

Terence Conran’s latest venture, the Bluebird food store, restaurant, café and club, has opened on London’s King’s Road.

An estimated 10m has been spent on converting the former Bluebird garage, first opened in 1923. Latterly a fashion market, gallery and studio, the building has been converted by Conran’s consultancy CD Partnership.

The restaurant occupies the building’s upper floor, while the food store, café, flower shop, outdoor fruit and vegetable market and a kitchenware shop are on the ground floor.

Conran says his aim has been to create “a food store unlike any other”, inspired by the markets of France and Italy and the delicatessens of New York.

As well as selling branded goods from around the world, the 1000m2 Bluebird store will stock the Conran Collection – a range of 100 own-brand products.

Packaging and other graphics for Bluebird have been designed by Morag Myerscough, working with the graphic designers at CD Partnership. The branding extends to bicycles to be used for home deliveries.

Conran says the packaging has “a straightforwardness”. He adds: “We are trying to get away from it looking like designer food. Much as I like the Harvey Nichols food packaging, it does make people think that the packaging is more important than the contents.”

On the potential for a chain of Bluebird food stores, Conran says: “We are not thinking about anything more than a one-off at the moment.”