C.P. Hart

Innovation and inspiration are at the heart of all that C.P. Hart does. As Britain’s leading premium bathroom designer and retailer, the company continually challenges the industry to take a fresh look at bathroom design. It has been in business since 1937 when Charles Percival Hart founded it by supplying sanitaryware and tiles out of a small shop in south-east London. Since then, the business has established its reputation for being first to the UK market with what have become household names – brands like Duravit – while expanding its own stable of exclusive ranges and C.P. Hart branded collections.

John Hart’s innovative Waterloo shower valve, launched in 1992, went on to become the biggest selling valve of the decade. It boasts robust, classical proportions, and dovetails with one of the company’s most popular classic collections, the London range. London is now available for the first time in on-trend blue and slate finishes, a timely response to the changing needs of today’s bathroom customer.

Thanks to continuing close collaborations with designers, most of the world’s leading manufacturers choose C.P. Hart to reveal their new designs in Britain – many of them exclusively. 2019 sees the company celebrate the 25th anniversary of the launch of AXOR’s Starck Classic single lever basin mixer designed by Philippe Starck. This groundbreaking tap was first unveiled in the UK by C.P. Hart and has become synonymous with world-class design.

2019’s product introductions include ranges by Italian manufacturer Cielo – a highlight is the Cielo Elle Ovale, an ultra-light, minimal oval washbasin with a ceramic splashback and mirror with LED lighting; a pioneering project by Scavolini and Diesel Living, which is a fresh take on the concept of industrial minimalism that combines warm hues, matt materials and large mirrored surfaces in its bathroom furnishings; and the Kut collection by Italian makers, Karol, featuring a vanity unit with an origami-like composition.

Housed within a series of railway arches underneath Waterloo station, C.P. Hart’s flagship showroom is the ultimate immersive bathroom design experience. Showcasing the latest product collections alongside a tile and samples library, it provides an airy and spacious meeting-place for designers, architects, trade professionals and their clients.

C.P. Hart now has 15 showrooms, most of them in and around London, but plans are afoot for more showrooms around the country – led by the company’s extraordinary Manchester branch. This year the priority is an extensive programme of showroom upgrades, including the relaunch of Primrose Hill, Manchester, Windsor, Amersham and Chiswick.

The company’s success – over 70 per cent of its business comes from trade recommendations and word of mouth – lies in offering exclusive products by top bathroom designers backed by a comprehensive design, supply and installation service.

At all its showrooms customers are introduced to C.P. Hart’s professional design service. A dedicated, fully-qualified interior designer will make a home visit before producing tailor-made drawings, elevations and mood boards to help visualise the beautiful, completed bathroom, down to the smallest detail. Several design packages are available, depending on the level of detail required at the planning stage, and a technical team is on hand to ensure the process is seamless every step of the way.

Customer deliveries are made in liveried vehicles from the company’s warehousing and logistics hub in Dartford; the complex also houses the company’s quality control and technical advisory teams.

As bathrooms have become more sophisticated, so installation requires more highly skilled and specialised practitioners. The finest bathrooms are distinguished by exceptional fit and finish. To achieve that, the company provides introductions to approved installers, each vetted and accredited by manufacturers. C.P. Hart’s installer approval scheme is the most comprehensive in the industry.

In all aspects of bathroom innovation, design and supply, C.P. Hart’s mission is to remain at the forefront. That certainly seems to be the case in 2019.