Creative Space – P Johnson Sydney

The talents of Patrick and Tamsin Johnson blend together to fashion a new tailor-made Sydney CBD space for P Johnson.

Interior designer Tamsin Johnson and husband Patrick Johnson, founder of custom tailor and clothier P Johnson, embody an effortless creative alignment. Though independent, their two compatible pursuits have evolved in relative unison, and their work on the tailor’s showroom in Sydney’s CBD is the latest feather in their cap.

Located within a former ballroom in the St James Trust Building, the new men’s showroom – with its decorative heritage features and incredible proportions – feels like a natural maturation for P Johnson.

Located within a former ballroom in the St James Trust Building, the new men’s showroom – with its decorative heritage features and incredible proportions – feels like a natural maturation for P Johnson (the label’s former home was in the nearby Chifley Tower). Uncovering it, however, was no easy feat. “I had a very specific idea of what I wanted, and I couldn’t find it,” reflects Patrick. “The city is typically full of traditional retail spaces, but what we do is very intimate, so we wanted the space to be private but also homey and open with a sense of occasion.”

Tamsin – who’s behind the design of P Johnson’s outposts in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, London and New York – was similarly enthralled. “It’s lofty, grand, elegantly detailed for its original use and thankfully hadn’t had any destructive redecorating, only painting, so it didn’t really need a lot of remediation.” Her biggest moves included adding a marble bar and wet area “for tea service”, suspended spotlights and velvet drapes in a deep shade of carmine for the changing rooms. “The rest came down to furnishings,” she says.

“The city is typically full of traditional retail spaces, but what we do is very intimate, so we wanted the space to be private but also homey and open with a sense of occasion.”

Much like the P Johnson brand, the resulting space is simultaneously cultivated and laid-back. Soaring ceilings, intricate original mouldings, arched windows and chevron timber floors set the refined tone, and Tamsin’s touch brings a spirited edge. Vintage and antique pieces – some sourced from France, Italy and Belgium – enliven the space, and P Johnson’s garments hang from racks beneath the west-facing windows. “Much of the furniture and art is our own, so it really is a genuine extension of us and our feelings for interiors, great experiences and how we like to conduct our lives,” says Tamsin.

Addressing the vastness of the room and introducing intimacy was integral, and clustered furniture prescribes a series of pockets, guiding the experience without feeling overly strict. Clients enter the room at its centre, where two pink, waist-high tables with glass tops offer a moment to pause and take in the room. To the left, a lounge area replete with a pair of blue velvet sofas flank a shagreen coffee table beside the changing rooms. There’s also a “long Spanish table with moire-covered chairs where you can pull up with a coffee and inspect cloth books,” says Tamsin, and a second lounge area at the far end near the marble bar.

Much like the P Johnson brand, the resulting space is simultaneously cultivated and laid-back.

On offer is a layered retail experience. “We make the wardrobe for the film that plays in your head when you picture the best version of yourself, you leave feeling inspired and then you wear those clothes to death,” says Patrick. “To do that, you need the right environment and the right stage.” Tamsin’s innate understanding of this ethos surely enhances the way clients interact with the label.

Of this process, Tamsin says both she and Patrick love the exercise. “We have much the same attack, but I have relative carte blanche too,” she quips. Patrick echoes this, saying “Tam’s incredible. It’s interesting, the way she designs. She does it in a way that’s so natural and she doesn’t overcomplicate things.” Patrick’s sense of warmth and hospitality is reflected in the affable way clients are welcomed into the space, and Tamsin’s inimitable oeuvre is omnipresent in the design. It’s sincere and uncontrived, and neither of them could do it any other way.

Interior design by Tamsin Johnson.