Michelin House – Tirelessly Elegant

London’s Best Office Spaces – The Links Between London’s Past and the Modern World

The eccentric Michelin House sits on Fulham Road in Kensington and its history is as colourful as its façade. It was built in 1911 and was the first permanent UK headquarters and depot of the Michelin Tyre Company. Designed by one of Michelin's employees, the striking building has three large stained-glass windows based on Michelin advertisements of the era, all featuring the Michelin Man, also known as ‘Bibendum’. Bibendum is the official mascot of the Michelin tyre company and was first revealed in 1894. It is one of the world's oldest trademarks and the name of the figure has entered the English language to describe someone wearing comically bulky clothing. Throughout the building, there is a number of decorative tiles depicting motor racing cars, of the same era, that used Michelin tyres. More tiles can be found inside the front of the building, which was originally a tyre-fitting bay for motorists passing through Kensington. People walking into the reception area of the building are today greeted by a mosaic on the floor showing Bibendum proclaiming “Nunc Est Bibendum” which is Latin for “Now is the time to drink". The Michelin company moved out of the building in 1985 and it was purchased by publisher Paul Hamlyn and the restauranteur and retailer Sir Terence Conran, who shared a love for the building. They commenced a redevelopment programme that included the restoration of some the original features. The new development became offices for Hamlyn's company, Octopus Publishing, as well as the Bibendum Restaurant & Oyster Bar, and a Conran Shop. The pair had to search for specialist suppliers to complete the restoration project and to recreate many of the property’s original features – some of the stained glass windows and other features had been removed for safety during the Second World War and replicas were made using original drawings, photos and posters. Known for its decorative design work, what cannot be seen from its exterior or interior design is that Michelin House is an early example of concrete construction in the UK. The building was constructed using Hennebique's ferro-concrete construction system. The system offered great benefits for the creation of clear open spaces which were ideal for efficient tyre storage and also for fire protection. It has been observed that Michelin House is very much like an Art-Deco building - the popular style of the 1930s with its prominent roadside position and its strong advertising images. In this respect, Michelin House was a building twenty years ahead of its time. Michelin House was listed as protected with a Grade II classification on the National Heritage List for England in 1969. Some of the features documented in the listing include the three bay front, octagonal corner turrets, ornamental ironwork and piers, windows headed with words "Michelin Tyre Company Limited Bibendum", and a series of pictorial tile panels on the side elevations and inside the drive-in. The panels represent the racing successes of cars fitted with Michelin tyres between 1900 and 1908, and also Edward VII and Prince George in their Michelin type fitted car. The Michelin Tyre Company’s close association with road maps and tourism guides is also reflected in a number of etchings of the streets of Paris on some of the first-floor windows. The guides that the company is also famous for are still produced today - Michelin Guides are a series of guides by the company and the term normally refers to the annually published Michelin Red Guide which is the oldest European hotel and restaurant reference guide, and awards up to three Michelin stars for excellence to a select few establishments.