Poggenpohl Contributes to “Eighth Wonder of the World”

Impossible architectural designs and futuristic city planning have become synonymous with Dubai, one of the world's leading business and travel destinations. The Burj al Arab and the Jumeirah Beach Hotel have become global symbols of humankind's advanced engineering capabilities. These are just two of the hundreds of gravity -defying buildings that trace the landscape of Dubai. Besides being one of the top holiday destinations, the emirate country has become a hotspot of property ventures and opportunities, attracting high-profile businessmen such as Donald Trump and South African-born Sol Kerzner.

One of Dubai's most recent developments, The Palms, is sure to become another international icon, symbolising our ability to shape and mould our environment. Three man-made islands have been built, each in the shape of a date palm tree, just off the coast of Dubai. Each island will be home to a few hundred villas and apartments, arguably ranking as some of the most sought after real estate in the world, where opulence filters through in every fitting and detail. 

The first island, The Palm Jumeirah, is to be completed by mid-2006 and boasts 120 kilometres of white sandy beach, forty luxury hotels, a range of shopping malls and a sprinkling of yacht marinas. Having been dubbed the eighth wonder of the world, developers are expecting an unsurpassed boom in the tourism industry, with 15 million tourists expected to visit yearly.

A complex of 250 villas is currently being developed, the design and layout created in The Palm's spirit of luxury and lavishness. Interestingly, the kitchen is one of the features that developers have chosen to focus on. In the past, the kitchen space has fulfilled a purely functional role, contributing moderately to the value of the property. These days, however, developers are focusing on kitchens as a major element of décor, design and lifestyle, positioning this room as the central nervous system of the home. In this sense, it needs to be exquisitely designed,  multi functional and spacious. With this in mind, developers of The Palms are echoing these sentiments and have announced that each villa will be fitted with no less than two Poggenpohl kitchens. One will act as the main kitchen, alone measuring up to 45 square metres, and the other smaller kitchen will form part of the utility room in each villa. When asked about their choice, the project developers cite Poggenpohl's reputation for innovation, classicism and the use of the finest materials as their motivation for choosing this brand. The apartments offer a certain lifestyle, one that focuses on merging a sense of openness, family, entertainment and functionality. Poggenpohl as a brand is able to supply these qualities.

Locally, this thinking is evident in the latest Victoria and Alfred Waterfront Marina Residential development, The Palgrave and Pembroke luxury apartments, where developers have similarly chosen to fit each apartment with a Poggenpohl kitchen. Peter Grobbelaar, the senior project manager of these 62 luxury apartments recently commented on the choice of kitchens. “The Palgrave and Pembroke buildings are the Rolls Royce of luxury developments in the Waterfront Marina. We therefore chose Poggenpohl kitchens because they are the most globally well-reputed brand when it comes to kitchen design. The quality of their design, materials and finishings put them at the top of their game,” says Grobbelaar.

Poggenpohl kitchens, including the Segmento, Integration and Plusmodo ranges are available in South Africa through sole importers Alpine German Kitchens.