Just four designers remain to fight it out for a place in the semi-finals. Arriving at Michelle's studio, they are split into teams of two and given their next challenge - the redesign of two cafes in the seaside town of Margate.
The finished venues need to attract both daytime and evening crowds, so the key to the task is delivering multifunctional spaces, with each team member taking ownership for their own zones. Before heading to Kent, the teams get a steer from their new clients via a Zoom meeting. One team learns that they must channel a cool Caribbean vibe, with their cafe also doubling up as an evening venue that hosts gigs and DJs. The other team has a seafront cafe, whose owners are looking for a design that avoids seaside cliché but has a welcoming vibe that matches their ambition to provide reasonably priced food for the whole community. Two different businesses, but for the designers the same goal - to take a step closer to winning the biggest commercial contract of their lives.
Assisting Michelle this week is guest judge Ross Bailey. CEO of AppearHere, he has an in-depth knowledge of what makes small hospitality businesses sink or swim.
