Foster + Partners Designs NYC Flagship for Spanish Tile Company

By next summer, Porcelanosa, a tile, kitchen, and bath product manufacturer based in Villareal, Spain, will have a new home in midtown Manhattan's historic Commodore Criterion Building. London-based Foster + Partners designed the interiors for the company's flagship showroom, which will feature products from the Porcelanosa Group’s eight brands. 


Courtesy Porcelanosa

Located at 5th Avenue and Broadway, the Commodore Criterion Building has been a designated landmark since 1981, so the design team was not permitted to alter the neoclassical facade.

Courtesy Porcelanosa

“The main design challenge has been to work within the protected shell to transform the interior,” said Norman Foster according to a Foster + Partners press release. “The design will create new visual connections vertically through the building and will introduce a greater variety of spaces, with a series of dramatic interlocking levels.” 


Courtesy Foster + Partners

Targeting Gold certification under LEED for Existing Buildings (LEED EB), the new showroom will include display areas, administrative offices, and an event space. Porcelanosa’s expansive offerings include ceramic and porcelain tile, natural stone, hardwood, mosaics, and kitchen/bath solutions. The design library will encompass an entire floor and feature more than 1,000 materials for designers to peruse.

Courtesy Foster + Partners

According to

TheWall Street Journal, the company paid $40 million for the property and is hoping to use it as a marketing tool to gain more presence in the United States.

Courtesy Porcelanosa

Out of more than 400 showrooms worldwide, 18 are located in the United States; Porcelanosa USA has been growing at a pace of 30 percent for the past 3 years and hopes to continue this growth with the new Manhattan showroom.