Dezeen Magazine

Vipp Pencil Factory contains space for 26 diners

Vipp converts former pencil factory in Copenhagen into supper club venue

Danish homeware brand Vipp has expanded into food by creating a venue for pop-up supper clubs inside the former Viking pencil factory in Copenhagen.

Set to launch during annual design festival 3 Days of Design, Vipp Pencil Factory is a 400-square-metre showroom space that will host guest chefs from around the world, creating a dining experience for up to 26 guests.

Vipp Pencil Factory will is a venue for supper clubs
The space was originally a factory for Viking pencils

The space was styled by interior designer Julie Cloos Mølsgaard, combining furniture and accessories from Vipp's collection with pieces sourced from local design galleries including Etage Projects, 2112 and Galleri Nils Stærk.

Located in lslands Brygge, the pencil factory had been closed down since the 1970s, when Viking – the manufacturer behind Denmark's ubiquitous yellow school pencils – was taken over by a rival company.

Mølsgaard's design sees the large industrial space become more cosy and intimate, with the introduction of wooden furniture and flooring along with tactile fabrics in the form of curtains, rugs and cushions.

Dinner table at Vipp supper club
Vipp is using the venue to host pop-up supper clubs

The food will be made in Vipp's modular V2 kitchen, which sits at the centre of the space.

Wide concrete steps lead up to the dining space, where a long table with a matching limestone surface is accompanied by swivel chairs in black leather. Folded paper pendant lamps hang overhead, while large windows provide the backdrop.

Grand piano at Vipp Pencil Factory
Music performances will accompany the dinners

This understated colour palette extends to the lounge areas, where visual interest is provided by original artworks, ceramics and sculptural furniture pieces.

There's also a grand piano, which creates a space for music performances.

Lounge area at Vipp Pencil Factory
The space features muted textiles, wooden flooring and ceramic objects

"I set myself free to play around and experiment with a complimentary mix of Vipp classics, upcoming products, and prototypes," said Mølsgaard.

"Vipp Pencil Factory acts as sort of a testing lab where we can try out new ideas, forms and materials in unconventional ways."

Sculptural table at Vipp Pencil Factory
Artworks and limited-edition design pieces were sourced from local galleries

The project is the latest in a series of new ventures for Vipp, which started out as a manufacturer of metal pedal bins.

The brand now also offers hotel stays – either in a prefabricated micro cabin in a Swedish forest, or in a loft apartment on top of its Copenhagen headquarters.

Vipp also recently launched a hybrid showroom in New York, which is used as both an exhibition space and a pied-à-terre for owners Sofie and Frank Christensen Egelund when they're in town.

The Viking pencil factory pop-up marks its first venture into the restaurant industry.

Vipp V2 kitchen
Food will be prepared in a kitchen at the centre of the space

Vipp Pencil Factory will officially launch on 16 September, during 3 Days of Design, with a public bar.

The first supper club will then be held on 23 September, with a dinner prepared by Italian chef Riccardo Canella, a former R&D sous chef at Noma.

Photography is by Anders Schønnemann.


Project credits

Project: Vipp
Interior design: Julie Cloos Mølsgaard
Floors: Dinesen
Curtains and carpets: Kvadrat
Paint: Jotun
Audio: B&O
Electric appliances: Miele
Shower: Dornbracht
Tiles: Made a Mano

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