Q&A with Portfolio Homes Alan Hamilton
Design Insider welcomed Alan Hamilton, Key Account Manager at Portfolio Home to come and tell us a bit more about Portfolio Home and how their products can help now more than ever.
Can you tell us about Portfolio Home, when was it launched?
Portfolio Home is a trusted and leading supplier of high-quality bed linen, towels, curtains and other home textile items. We supply to retailers, show homes, caravans, hotels, serviced apartments and care homes within the UK. We have a vast range of on-trend, continually refreshed products and we’re proud to be design-led; satisfying demands for the latest styles.
The business has been in operation since 1975, so we’ve gained the experience and creativity to become a dependable business that has built a reputation at the forefront of the textile design and product innovation. Portfolio Home was acquired in 2018 by is the Evans Group of Companies and the business has gone from strength-to-strength with the continual investment in personnel, technology and innovation that serves our customers every whim within the textile and soft furnishing market.
What types of products do you offer?
Portfolio Home has a wide range of products with over 2,500 available lines available from stock. The business continually introduces new styles and designs to ensure Portfolio Home is abreast of the latest domestic and commercial design trends. We have a dedicated UK design studio where our expert team take product development very seriously but we also welcome clients to the studio to develop products inline with their vision. The products we offer are bed linen, sheets, bath towels, kitchenware, table linen, curtains, cushions amongst other textile items.
What this means for BCFA members that operate within the hospitality, leisure and healthcare sectors, is our range of products and design options from entry-level, value engineered bedding to curtains through to high quality, raised jacquards and high thread count options means the possibilities are endless. We’ve also recently launched our specialist care bedding as either flame-retardant or non-flame retardant which offers clients various levels of options to keep their residents safe and comfortable.
What are the requirements and demands for bedding in contract environments?
Investing in high-quality contract bedding ensures residents and guests in a commercial environment are protected. Take for instance, bed linen which is soft, breathable and fire resistant is perfect for long term residential setting but also suitable for dormitories, hotels and leisure environments but flame retardant bedding isn’t an essential but is many do recommend it. We generally have three options for bedding in contract environments:
• We have a range of specialist care bedding which has ‘envelope’ sealing ensure maximum safety to residents or guests (without the need for potentially hazardous poppers or buttons). This bedding is lightweight, breathable and value engineered to be low cost.
• We also offer a range of inherently flame-retardant bedding using fabrics which substantially decreases the risk of fire and injury for those that are less agile and ensures maximum safety.
• In addition we offer a wide range of contemporary bed linen with various options including high thread counts, woven jacquards, 100% cotton, anti-bacterial and anti-hypoallergenic – helping with allergies and breathing problems.
Although often overlooked, providing the right bedding can improve sleep quality, limit restlessness and contribute to a better quality of life.
What regulations must flame retardant bedding meet?
Care homes are exempt from anti-smoking legislation however, business owners of hospitality, healthcare and other organisations have a duty of care to ensure everything in their power is done to reduce the risk of fire and improve the safety of their guests, staff and residents alike. Fire safety in non-domestic buildings, which includes care homes, serviced apartments, holiday homes, show homes, caravans and hotels, are controlled by the Regulatory Reform (Fire safety) Order 2005. In short, the order imposes a duty on the operator of the building to take responsibility for fire safety – this includes ensuring soft furnishings and fabrics meet British Standards.
The UK standard for flame retardancy is BS5867, Part 2B means that an item can be washed 12 times and still passes the fire-retardant test, while Part 2C relates to inherently flame-retardant fabrics; these can be washed up to 50 times and continue to be fire resistant. Portfolio Home offers bed linen which is inherently flame retardant.
Unawareness or avoidance of the flame-retardant furnishing regulations can have devastating consequences. A shocking and sombre reminder of the devastation hazardous fire can have on inadequate materials is the tragedy of Grenfell Tower. The speed in which the fire engulfed the building, the little chance of escape for the more susceptible being confused or less agile. This is a stark reminder to choose the right fabrics.
A simple change to flame retardant British Standard certified bed linen will reduce fire risk in any environment.
Contact Portfolio Home through the BCFA Product Finder.
The BCFA Product Finder is a unique search engine created especially for interior designers to source contract furnishing companies. Utilising this platform will support your findings for upcoming projects, with over 200 members profiles showcasing the latest product launches, new materials available, industry news and design trends.