Covet NYC: An Exclusive Interview With Ricardo Magalhães

Covet NYC means curated design with luxury elements and a contemporary touch. After opening design showrooms in cosmopolitan cities such as London and Paris, Covet House has now adventured in yet again another thrilling space, offering a new luxury design experience in the Big Apple with Covet NYC. CovetED has had the incredible pleasure to have a talk with Ricardo Magalhães, one of the creative minds behind this project and co-founder of the multi-specialised design group.

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“We want to listen to our clients, to be closer with them, to learn more about their expectations… Our projects have an open character, so we always want to do something different and better”.

Covet NYC, otherwise known as The Mansion, was the result of an outstanding collaboration between Tessler Developments and Covet House, in one of the most coveting addresses in New York City, 172 Madison Avenue. According to Magalhães, this was a fundamental stating project that gave the group the opportunity “to be closer to the market, with the reality in terms of design and the space itself, and the needs of our clients, which in this case, are mostly interior designers and architects. This allows us to have a more authentic vision regarding the market and how we can select our products based on its identity but also taking into consideration functionality and aesthetics, and putting our own spin into the overall design, thus introducing added value.”

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This new project acts as a global design proposal that has the main purpose of inspiring an interested audience of industry professionals or clients, to completely surpass one’s expectations and fulfill their needs, and as Ricardo Magalhães discloses that “the wow factor comes in to play, and above all, we want people to live and breathe the space, so they can feel the textures and materials, and ultimately feel our essence… For us is also important that they challenge us, we want to listen to our clients, to be closer with them, to learn more about their expectations … our projects have an open character, so we always want to do something different and better”.

The showroom showcases the group’s irreverence and fierce attitude towards design where inspiration and creativity are key to the process. This unique platform provides designers and creators with the freedom of being inspired by astonishing spaces and products and then they can eventually translate that beauty into their own projects.

Furthermore, Covet NYC highlights a curated selection of furniture, lighting, upholstery and accessories from 11 of the best European luxury brands, most of which are a complement to each other while also having their own set of characteristics and styles as well as a specific design language. In virtue of such, the group is able to convey its message, a luxury lifestyle, a unique aesthetic, and an unmatched sense of comfort where the values of each brand and the group itself are represented, while never neglecting the needs of a client.

“Our main challenge was to understand our audience, to understand the client and the space, and then adapt and harmonize the exterior, the aesthetic value of the building’s architecture with the interiors” states Ricardo Magalhães. One of the areas that best reflects this is the dining and living areas. This inspirational open space perfectly connects the exterior with the interior, as Magalhães affirms that “one of the aspects that I appreciate the most as an interior designer is that the space is an extension of the exterior and vice-versa. It is the division that best represents what our group is, a lounge space.”

When asked about his greatest achievements as an interior designer, Magalhães further emphasis on this notion of developing projects where the lounge space is the protagonist. Over the past three years, they have mastered this concept, especially in trade shows and fairs as well as in design showrooms and the response by designers and visitors alike has been extremely positive.

“Interior designers and architects come to us, to see if we can also help them in their projects, they really come prepared to talk to us. I think that this recognition has been an immense source of pride. It means that we are on the right path, our message is getting across, and above all, we get to help others, we can contribute on the development of their projects, and it’s not only a matter of supplying products. It gives us a sense of credibility.”