Intergenerational living gets a makeover at Hamburg’s new co-living and hospitality concept, The Embassies
Part workspace, part residence, the communal facility by Jan Garde and Henning Weiss is bringing people in all stages of life together in style.
“We are curating the biggest dinner party in town,” says Jan Garde, co-founder of The Embassies, referring to the ambience that he hopes to create at his new intergenerational-living facility-cum-private members’ club in Hamburg. On the ground floor is a café and a shop stocking products that range from magazines to Swiss-made skis by Timbaer. Upstairs is the Ambassador’s Club for both residential and non-residential members, which includes a sauna and a gym. Finally, there are 45 apartments for “resident ambassadors”.
Garde and his co-founder, Henning Weiss, are seeking to revitalise senior living by creating somewhere enticing for people of all ages to live and work. For residents, The Embassies provides sleekly designed assisted-living apartments. For everyone else, the Ambassador’s Club is a working environment.
Beyond the kitchen lie the workspace and dining table, as well as 44 desks, three boardrooms and soundproofed booths. “Once cocktail hour starts, laptops are confined to the workspace,” says Garde. The rest of the club floor was conceived by UK designer Ilse Crawford and StudioIlse, with the interior by architecture firm Monoplan. Sofas upholstered in heather-grey and dusty-pink fabrics sit alongside standout pieces (such as a pair of Eames chairs), while paper lampshades and Louis Poulsen lamps keep the lighting soft. Books are everywhere and their subjects are as varied as Japanese architecture, photographer Helmut Newton and malt whisky.
Membership for non-residents starts at about €300 a month, with a sign-on fee of €750. There is careful supervision of who makes it through the door. For Jürgen Alker, a strategic adviser to the sports and creative industries, The Embassies provides a soothing place to work. He likens it to an elegantly designed hotel lobby. “You feel people’s energy but you don’t need to interact with everyone,” he says. “Nobody’s watching me but there is an intimacy.”
embassies.com
