Hobbs leaves CDP to form consultancy

Restaurant specialist Keith Hobbs is quitting CD Partnership to set up his own design consultancy. Hobbs, head of interiors at CDP since its 1993 birth, is taking five designers with him – almost half of CDP’s interiors staff.

Hobbs, who has worked with CDP founder Sir Terence Conran on restaurants such as London’s Quaglino’s, says he is unlikely to collaborate with Conran in the immediate future.

Hobbs describes his five years with Conran as “enjoyable”, but says “developments within CD Partnership have led us to make the difficult decision to leave”.

He adds: “CDP… is run in a very autocratic manner, and we wanted to create a more democratic design group where people share work and accolades.”

Conran says CDP will continue to design interiors and is recruiting replacements. He offers no comment on why Hobbs is going.

The mass departure follows CDP director Deirdre Morrow’s exit to join headhunter Thomas Cole Kinder (DW 10 February).