Baytree Interiors, which retails home accessories, lighting and furniture, has hired experienced interior designer Ella De Wastney to join its head office team based near Bedale.
With over 25 years' experience in interior design, Ella will work with Baytree Interiors' buying team, advising on product selection and developing complementary ranges enabling customers to re-create a complete room set in their own home. She will also advise on product display and showroom concepts within Baytrees chain of ten stores across the North.
As well as spending 19 years as an interior design manager with Laura Ashley, Ella has also undertaken a diverse range of freelance projects - from furnishing a chateau in France and a castle in Scotland to designing a hotel room for Princess Anne.
"We have seen tremendous growth in our retail business over the last few years, both in the physical shops we have opened across Yorkshire and the North East, and also in our online offering. With demand continuing to grow, we want to take Baytree to a new level by pulling together our product ranges and offering customers a complete lifestyle brand," says Nik Hill, MD of Baytree Interiors.
"Ella's experience working with a leading high street furnishings retailer, as well as undertaking design projects with businesses and individual clients, will be a huge benefit. She is a fantastic addition to our team, helping our buyers to look beyond the appeal of individual products and offer our customers complete ranges designed to enable them to transform their homes with coordinated room sets."
Ella comments: "This is a really exciting opportunity. Baytree has already established a reputation for providing unusual homeware at competitive prices and is able to source the very latest products from all over the world. My aim is to find innovative home accessories, furniture and lighting which work together as a complete design scheme, inspiring our customers to create the Baytree lifestyle in their own homes."
Baytree Interiors is part of a family business started by Graham and Joan Hill 40 years ago which imports and distributes furniture, gifts and interiors accessories to interiors shops, garden centres and online traders. It now employs 120 staff and has ambitious plans to expand its retail outlets across the UK. There are currently Baytree stores in Knaresborough, Harrogate, Northallerton, Halifax, York, Ilkley, Middlesbrough, the Metrocentre and two shops in Whitby as well as its online offering.
