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Case Study: The Shire
The Shire Works, a new restorative, on-site workplace at a rural English wellness retreat, specified SynSisal Tile to meet everyday performance demands without compromising wellbeing or natural aesthetics.
Project Details:
Category
Wellness, Workspace
Location
Towcester, UK
Request
"Need a natural carpet tile that looks like sisal."
Solution
Ridge Tile | Honeycomb | SynSisal® Tile for 250 sq m of office space.
How do you add a workspace to a wellness retreat while preserving what makes it restorative?
Set within the English countryside, The Shire is a wellness retreat centered around restoration, connection and time spent in nature. When the destination expanded to include a new on-site workspace in July 2026 called The Shire Works, Rebecca de Courcy-Ireland of Studio RHD was tasked with ensuring the new space carried that same restorative philosophy into the working environment.
The Design Challenge:
Sourcing performance flooring without compromising well-being or natural aesthetics.
Designing for well-being asks more of commercial materials: natural character and sensory warmth, without compromising performance. SynSisal Tile was selected by Studio RHD and George Taylor, Co-Founder of The Shire, at precisely this intersection, where workplace, wellness and hospitality increasingly meet.
We spoke with Rebecca de Courcy Ireland about overcoming this design challenge:
Could you tell us about your role on The Shire Works and which aspects of the space you were responsible for?
Rebecca: My role was to come up with the overall design concept for the space initially and thereafter, my role was to find the best products, colours and accessories for the space to make the concepts and ideas a reality. I traditionally design residential projects and was tasked to design all of the common areas and coworking spaces.
What did you want someone to feel when they entered The Shire Works?
Rebecca: On entering the space, I would hope that they feel inspired to have the best working day whilst still feeling somehow ‘at home’—for ‘coworking to feel like home-working’.
What were you looking for from the flooring, both aesthetically and functionally?
Rebecca: The flooring was a problem. Aesthetically, the space was calling out for a natural wood floor. Whilst my client was on board with this, there was the considerable cost of material and labor for fitting, plus the obvious problems of acoustics once it was laid. Being a coworking space by nature, there would always be someone walking in and out and the noise would have been disruptive for others, in short, there was a lot of general noise the owner wanted to get rid of. The existing floor was office carpet tile, so I initially researched a replacement carpet tile. Wanting to stay away from the office grey, I found that commercial carpet tile color choices are limited.
How did SynSisal Tile in Honeycomb become part of the material palette?
Rebecca: I googled "natural flooring in a tile" and that brought me to SynSisal Tile. I have used sisal in natural and synthetic fibers in many of my residential projects, so I was delighted to find a product with a similar look, but that fulfilled the practical requirements for an office space. This product is brilliant. The Honeycomb color is brilliant.
How did you balance the softer, restorative qualities of The Shire with the practical requirements of a working commercial space?
Rebecca: By using a neutral palette and earthy tones, I feel we have managed to create a space that works in tandem with the wellness side of The Shire, being true to the rural location and low-key identity of the space. With that said, we also needed The Shire Works to instantly be recognizable as an office space. Formica desks with hairpin legs and a good classic office chair in black were perfect for this.
Are there lessons from The Shire Works that you think could translate to more conventional workplaces?
Rebecca: I truly believe that all the answers one needs are within the space—you just need to find them. The practical considerations must be acknowledged, obviously, but the overall design of space and co-adjoining spaces that must work together is a process of building a story.
Well-being is shaped by the materials we experience every day.
Traditional workplaces are often designed around function, efficiency, and productivity first. Studio RHD took a different approach for The Shire Works, considering well-being in every aspect of the environment, from the materials and textures underfoot to the way the space supports focus, comfort, and connection.
How SynSisal Tile fits: Ridge Tile in Honeycomb softens surrounding noise with inherent acoustic benefits, creates a visually soothing environment with its natural sisal character, and adds a layer of comfort underfoot.
Nature as a design partner.
The Shire Works draws inspiration from the soothing natural environment beyond its walls. Studio RHD translated that connection through warm, earthy tones, tactile materials, and organic textures that give the workplace a softer, more grounded character that reflects the surrounding rural country.
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The Spec: SynSisal Tile
Every material inside The Shire Works was chosen to support the same philosophy: calm, comfort, and connection. To help achieve that vision, The Shire selected SynSisal Tile in color Honeycomb for their flooring: a modular carpet tile that recreates the timeless beauty of natural sisal in a durable, hospitality-grade format.
Name: | Ridge Tile | Pile Material: | ECONYL® PA6, Regenerated Nylon |
Color: | Honeycomb | Secondary Backing: | 100% recyclable PES with self-stick adhesive |
Collection: | SynSisal Tile | Full Tile Size: | 19.7" x 19.7" |
Recommended Use: | Indoor, Heavy Contract | Fire Rating: | Bfl-s1 |
Why The Shire Chose Modular Tile Over Rolled Carpet
Ease of Installation
A self-sticking backing enables simple place-and-press installation, eliminating the need for adhesive and making individual tiles easy to replace.
Commercial Performance
Contract durability, ease of maintenance, and fire ratings are essential for workspace environments.
Modular Flexibility
Installed monolithically for a continuous natural sisal-look foundation across conference rooms, corridors and lobby area.
The sound of calm.
Managing noise at its source, together with sound-blocking and absorptive materials, is central to a comprehensive acoustic strategy.
With approximately 27 dB improvement in impact-sound insulation and measurable sound absorption of αw = 0.20, SynSisal Tile helps reduce impact-noise transmission and manage reflected sound at the floor plane.†
The Material Nature of Wellbeing
Design cannot cure burnout. But Curran believes the material environment can either compound everyday depletion or support moments of restoration.
The Shire Works
The Shire Works is a new premium workplace destination offering a curated selection of fully serviced offices and dedicated co-working desks.
This is not simply another office space or co-work pop up, it is an environment designed for people who want to work hard, but without sacrificing their wellbeing.
You're In Good Company.
From across the nation and world, top commercial designers and hospitality brands consistently choose Curran for durable, code-compliant, and quiet area rugs, stair runners, tiles, and wall-to-wall carpeting.
