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Commercial Interior Design

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Commercial Interior Design

Architecture, interiors and design at www.commercialinteriordesign.com Commercial Interior Design is the definitive magazine for the region's design community.

Now in its 17th year, it features news, interviews, case studies and market reports in each issue, making it the industry's most sought after publication on interior design with a special focus on the commercial and contract sectors. It remains the leading source of ideas, inspiration, and product and project information for industry professionals, including interior designers, fit-out firms, specifiers, suppliers and developers - both private and public sectors - across the Middle East.

03/06/2026

Studio design tips from Cambra Buró 🕶️

We asked CEO, founder and design director Alicia Cambra (.buro) to share one way design teams can create a workspace that’s both productive and fun. Here is the answer:

“Create a space that feels flexible and personal. A studio should support focus, but also allow spontaneous conversations, material exploration, and moments of play. That balance is what keeps creativity alive.”

The practice is cleverly crafted to allow conversations and ideas to flow organically. Cambra talks us through the Kuwait office space, sharing the thinking behind its boldest design decisions and why fig is next in line as the studio’s signature scent...

Wisdom to inspire and design excellence to strive for. Find the post on CID.

30/05/2026

Welcoming Maison Yoca to Dubai’s thriving design community ✨🇦🇪

As Maison Yoca (.yoca) enters the Middle East market with a new studio in Dubai, we caught up with architect and creative director Sarah Najmi Bilgrami () who founded the multi-award-winning luxury design house alongside Syed Zayd Bilgrami.

For Sarah, art and architecture have always been intrinsic to her upbringing, and her path towards a design career has been shaped by both pinch-me, award-winning milestones and quiet moments of observation, exploration, and discovery through travel – each contributing to a natural design instinct.

“I was always made aware that a designer’s role runs far deeper than the selection of tapestry or the placement of art,” shares Bilgrami.

“It is a meticulous curation of the thoughtful integration of a visual language into the fabric of someone’s life. My greatest ongoing inspiration remains the people I design for. Understanding them fully, and then carefully, honestly, educating them in the fundamentals of a design language that serves who they are – that is the work that matters most to me.”

An inspiring ethos that shapes much of the work in our region, an exciting moment to celebrate.

Images courtesy of

27/05/2026

Introducing the W Penthouse 🌊

Designed for a young couple, the 17,900 sq ft Palm Jumeirah home connects Mediterranean clarity with subtle Latin warmth, using coastal tones and textures.

The project emphasises restraint and continuity – bringing architectural rhythm, depth of materiality and proportion together in an expression of quiet luxury.

“The concept was driven by a clear intention; to bring the presence of the sea into the interior,” explains Guillermo Blanco, founder and creative director of (WDM) who completed the project.

“Given the spectacular views, we wanted the house to feel connected to its surroundings, drawing from the tones and textures of the beach to shape the material language.”

Find the project on CID ✨

Styling: Karolina Sowa & Ahmed Hamada
Photography: Yasar Curtay
Floral arrangements:

25/05/2026

Rethinking how we build

There is a persistent myth in architecture that sustainability and beauty are in tension – that designing responsibly means making sacrifices in experience, material quality, or spatial ambition. In practice, the opposite is true. The most enduring buildings we admire are invariably those that were designed with care, with restraint, and with a clear sense of what they were for. Longevity and quality are not in conflict. They are the same thing.

🖋️ Writing for CID, Khaled Al Shamaa, director and co-founder of XYZ Designers () explores how architectural beauty and sustainability can evolve together – creating a more enduring, relevant built environment in the Gulf.

You can read the full post on CID.

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24/05/2026

A luminous residential project to bring into the spotlight 🌟

The design vision for the Sienna Views Villa renovation was brought to life by Soul Road (.co) in collaboration with Akoa Interiors (.interiors), and it is a masterclass in architectural and design restraint.

Located within Jumeirah Golf Estates, it began as a “good” property in a prime location but now boasts completely reimagined interiors and has undergone a comprehensive revision of the floor plan, along with an architectural overhaul of the façade and rear elevation – placing the 10,000 sq ft property in its own league of design excellence.

Defined by a minimalist aesthetic and a seamless indoor–outdoor narrative, the villa celebrates quiet luxury at its finest. “We weren’t afraid of white space,” says Sophie Newcombe, founder and managing director of Soul Road, the Dubai-based studio. “There is often a temptation to fill every wall with either a rich material or an artwork, but we were determined to let the house breathe and allow the space itself to shine.”

Blank canvas minimalism bolstered by a thoughtful design process makes for timeless and inspiring spaces.

Construction by: .llc
📸 Kelly Tooze ()

22/05/2026

The excitement begins ✨

The moment many have been waiting for: the CID Hospitality Awards shortlist has arrived. Spotlighting the very best in hospitality design across the MENA region, this year’s awards raise the bar even higher with the introduction of exciting new categories, including Best Coffee Shop / Café Design and Best Narrative-Driven Concept Design, to recognise the spaces that not only look exceptional but tell unforgettable stories.

Taking place on Thursday, 25 June at the JW Marriott Marquis Dubai, the event stands at the heart of CID’s annual awards celebrations to honour the vision, creativity, and boundary-pushing ideas shaping the region’s most compelling guest experiences.

Congratulations to those who made the shortlist and thank you to everyone who submitted nominations this year, the competition was fierce.

Remember to secure your seats with early bird tickets available until 11.59 pm this evening, Friday May 22.

We look forward to celebrating together 🌟

16/05/2026

On designing without reset: What design inherits after crisis

There’s a persistent fiction that follows every crisis: that once the dust settles, the city begins again. Clean slate. New systems. Better plans. But that’s rarely what happens.

What you actually inherit is something far less legible: half-working infrastructures, spaces that were never meant to hold the lives now unfolding within them, and layers of occupation that don’t quite align but continue anyway. Design doesn’t enter as a gesture of renewal; it enters into negotiation. With what remains, with what’s been repurposed, and with what was never formally designed to begin with. In that sense, post-crisis work isn’t about starting over. It’s about learning how to read what’s already there, even when it resists being read.

🖋️ Layal Merhi, architect, designer and educator

A powerful read on CID.

13/05/2026

In the studio with Mustafa Khamash ( ), founder and creative director of Kart Group ()

“The workspace is structured as a sequence of controlled zones rather than a single
open plan,” says Arch Mustafa.

“Light is calibrated, not maximised; glare is reduced to maintain cognitive clarity. Acoustics are engineered to support concentration. Every decision is measured against output: reduced fatigue, longer focus cycles, and improved review accuracy across project teams.”

A beautifully layered studio that is inviting, tranquil and primed for productivity.

Photos: Sebastian Böttcher (.bottcher)

09/05/2026

National Pavilion UAE returned to the Venice Biennale today for the 61st edition: “In Minor Keys”.

The group exhibition titled “Washwasha”, brings together six artists – Mays Albaik, Jawad Al Malhi, Farah Al Qasimi, Alaa Edris, Lamya Gargash, and Taus Makhacheva – creating a body of work that unfolds the auditory value embedded in the UAE’s shifting landscape: shaped by narratives of migration, oral histories, technological rhythms, transient but deep ties to the land.

Lamya Gargash () is among the Emirati artists represented by The Third Line gallery (Dubai), this year.

“Being in Venice is a pleasure and an honour,” shares Lamya, a multidisciplinary artist who lives and works in Dubai. “It holds a very dear place in my heart since I last exhibited at the UAE Pavilion in 2009.”

Her work explores themes of cultural identity, loss and memory. Through the lens of aesthetics, Lamya’s work lands on unseen architectural and social residues of the UAE’s rapidly changing urban landscape, presented through images of domestic interiors and abandoned homes, telling a deeply-rooted narrative that invites visual listening and contemplation.

“I am a proud Emirati and Arab, and I come from a region where stories are continually unfolding shaped by memory, identity, and an ever-evolving cultural landscape. The Venice Biennale stands as a rare space of cross-cultural exchange and universal dialogue where artistic languages meet overlap and open new possibilities for understanding. To be part of this moment is to contribute to a wider field of communication that moves beyond borders and allows ideas histories and lived experiences to be seen felt and shared.”

A beautiful art fair and canvas for talent, putting the Gulf region’s creative vigour on a global stage.

Photography:
Image courtesy of National Pavilion UAE , La Biennale di Venezia .
Photo by Ismail Noor of Seeing Things.
Lamya Gargash portrait 2024. Photo by Pam Kay

Special thanks to The Third Line gallery, Dubai

08/05/2026

Could you be on CID’s KSA Power List?

The architecture of the King Abdullah Financial District needs no introduction, and design in Saudi Arabia goes beyond aesthetics – it’s a force for meaning. Shaping identity, reframing narratives and creating memorable spaces that are visionary yet deeply rooted in the Kingdom’s heritage.

Last year, CID put the spotlight on 28 designers in Saudi for their exceptional work in commercial interior design and architecture across sectors. This year, we want to celebrate even more names from the Kingdom.

If you’re restoring heritage, crafting immersive hospitality experiences, or reimagining commercial spaces for a new generation, this is your moment.

Enter for a place on the KSA Power List 2026 on CID today.

The deadline for entry is 11.59 pm on Thursday, May 14.

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Dubai

Opening Hours

Monday	09:00 - 17:00
Tuesday	09:00 - 17:00
Wednesday	09:00 - 17:00
Thursday	09:00 - 17:00
Sunday	09:00 - 17:00

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https://www.commercialinteriordesign.com/

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