In December last year, the long-awaited London LGBTQ+ Community Centre opened the doors to its pop-up premises, a stone’s throw from Tate Modern beside Blackfriars station – the six-month pilot for what will hopefully become a permanent project. As a result of an initiative coordinated by communications agency Zetteler, the centre has been sustainably furnished using items donated by some of the most respected names in the capital’s design community.

First conceived of in 2017, the centre is intended to provide London’s LGBTQ+ community with a safe, sober, intergenerational and intersectional social space to relax, build networks, and access essential services. Its space, a former retail unit on Hopton Street, Southwark, was empathetically designed to meet the specific needs of the community by queer architect Martha Rawlinson (she/her) and fitted out by an all-LGBTQ+ building crew. As well as requiring that the centre should offer its users a welcoming, stylish environment, the project team were determined that its development should be as sustainable and environmentally considerate as possible, and were therefore keen that no items of furniture should be bought new.

“It was incredibly important to us to strike the right balance between simplicity, functionality and aesthetics. We wanted the space to be bright but homely, welcoming and not intimidating or overwhelming, but we also wanted to have as little impact on the planet as possible. We set out to repurpose pre-loved items as much as we possibly could, and in fact, almost everything in the Centre has been donated and is second-hand or pre-loved. We wrote a sustainability statement along with our furniture call-out that we gave to the brilliant folks at Zetteler, and their roster of clients and contacts helped us source the most amazing items.”

– Sarah Moore (she/her), Volunteer Director, London LGBTQ+ Community Centre

Supportive of the project, Zetteler realised that, as a communications agency specialising in the design sector, it was uniquely placed to access to some of the most well-respected design brands and studios, so reached out to its network to see whether anyone would be happy to show their support for the centre and donate furniture.

“Thanks to 10 years entrenched in London’s design sector, we were well placed to find a solution to the centre’s need for functional, welcoming, and beautiful design pieces sourced from the people we know so well. It was heartwarming to see the offers flood in. We’re really proud of everyone for making this happen.”
– Sabine Zetteler, founder and director, Zetteler

The response to the call-out was immediate and overwhelming, with more than a dozen leading design studios and design brands coming forward to provide items.

Wooden furniture maker Benchmark provided 10 bespoke café tables and legs all in solid oak.

The Office Group provided 32 Eames Plastic Side Chairs from Vitra, eight wooden chairs and an Artek sofa in green and white.

London studio Pearson Lloyd gave two sofas and an armchair.

French design brand Petite Friture donated two lounge chairs and pouffes.

Three large beautiful rugs – Tiger, Båstad and Plus designs – were provided by Floor Story…
…and another three (Sumac, Lucknow Day and Haze in Brown) by Nordic Knots.
A head-turning Ilse Crawford table in white oiled ash came from De La Espada.
Robin Grasby, founder of Altrock, created a bespoke terrazzo bar counter.

Made.com gifted a sage green velvet Tamyra three-seater sofa and two Elio armchairs.

Anglepoise supplied a total of 10 floor and table lamps from the Original 122 range.

Kitchen design studio Uncommon Projects donated eight cork-topped stools.

Universal Design Studio provided 15 of Vitra’s colourful Tip Ton chairs.

Sustainable furniture studio Goldfinger offered two trestle tables and a ladder.

Iconic retailer twentytwentyone donated beautiful bar stools, chairs and stools.
Fragrance maker Laboratory Perfumes enhanced the atmosphere with 48 scented candles.