Vibrant tiles by Waxman Architectural feature at Vita Group's House of Social.

House of Social is a Manchester destination that combines shared student apartments with a lively, two-floor food hall below - a city centre space designed for people to eat, drink, work and socialise in, open from early morning through to midnight with events and DJs across the week.

When it came to designing this venue, Vita Group crafted an interior to bring people together. Waxman Architectural - a specialist in tiles and a Partner at Material Source Studio Manchester was proud to help shape that with a carefully curated selection of tiles to adorn various zones in the food hall.

The bars and tables were brought to life using Rainbow Cobalt tiles – a glossy, vibrant coloured tile that injects a retro vibe into the space, giving a visual nod to the classic American diner. Their bold, saturated finish gives the bars real presence, acting as a focal point that draws the eye and sets a playful, slight nostalgic tone for the rest of the food hall.

That retro thread continues into the flooring, where Winckelmans chequered black and white tiles were used in part of the space, with an unglazed finish. As well as being hard-wearing and built to withstand the high footfall of a busy food hall, the chequered pattern makes for a brilliant central feature, anchoring the space with a timeless, graphic design.

Working harmoniously to balance out that bold centrepiece, Brooklyn Beige was used across the surrounding floors in a terrazzo effect. This allowed the Winckelmans mosaic to stand out as a genuine feature floor rather than compete with its surroundings, while still carrying the retro theme through the wider space. It also served a practical purpose, creating a clear visual separation between different zones of the food hall simply through a change in tile style, without the need for physical partitions.

The bathrooms were designed and completed using Winckelmans dark blue and white tiles in a chequered pattern, carried right through from floors to walls and vanities. The bold blue-and-white mosaic covers every surface, reinforcing that same modern-yet-retro identity found throughout the rest of the space and ensuring the design language feels consistent from the food hall right down to the finer details.

House of Social’s food hall has fast become a genuine hub for the city – an ideal “third space” for students and locals alike to eat, drink, work and unwind. As you'll see if you visit, Waxman's tiles have played a key part in bringing that vibrant, retro-inspired atmosphere, created by Vita Group, to life.