Tribeca-inspired design meets Adelaide living: Crafting a home that doubles as a showcase for Adelaide Residential
Chris Varvaris is Project Manager and part of the family-owned business Adelaide Residential, a small boutique residential builder in South Australia. When Chris decided to build a home for himself, he reached to his previous life overseas for inspiration. He also came up with some clever ideas on how to capitalise on the finished product.
Chris decided that the house he would build for himself could double as a display home for the business, so clients could come and physically view the quality of an Adelaide Residential build.
“We built it as my home, but it doubled as our display home to showcase our quality and services.” said Chris. Viewings were by appointment. “I just had to be very neat and tidy!”
Tapping into a new market
Having previously built a double-storey display home in the area, Adelaide Residential felt they were potentially neglecting an important customer-type in the home building market. Chris’ decision to build an architecturally designed, large, single-storey home provided the opportunity to maximise the potential buyer’s market in the area to include downsizers and retirees who prefer a home without stairs. The home also came with a decent sized but low maintenance garden.
“Generally, that target market is a group that could afford a home that is built to the level of quality of this home, and it seemed there was an opportunity to showcase floorplan, architectural detail and high-end finishes that would suit their lifestyle,” said Chris.
Bringing Tribeca home
The use of the Tribeca brick from the PGH Bricks Manhattan range was one of the key architectural considerations in the house. Chris loved the brick when he first saw it and wanted to make it a large part of the facade and interiors, but he also had a deeper association.
“I lived overseas in New York for a time and Tribeca is an area in New York City, so I just really liked that connection,” said Chris.
The use of the industrial style brick as a main part of a home design was a relatively unexplored idea in the area at that time. “The majority of the projects we had seen with it only used it for a few feature walls or part of the facade; however, we wanted to use it around the whole house.”
The Tribeca brickwork is carried from the exterior facade into the main 3.8m entry vestibule bringing a sense of connection between inside and out.
“We wanted a feature wall in the main living space too and after reviewing a few other types of cladding and wall panelling, we elected to continue the Tribeca brick. We felt the use of American Walnut timber benchtops in the kitchen and entertainment unit tied in well with the brickwork.”
A hot property on the market
Chris and Adelaide Residential certainly created a beautifully designed, expertly crafted home that doubled as a display home designed to inspire a specific audience. When Chris finally came to sell his home, it certainly gained a lot of attention. “It was a very well-known house in the area and people loved the brick. We had about 100 groups of people through on the first open for inspection that we had,” said Chris. And yes, Chris sold his home to a retired couple!
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