“We wanted to set the table,” says Megan Wyper, of Acme, the brand previously known for hard-working coffee cups and saucers. Originally created for hospitality – where they’re still present in almost every cafe in the country – they’ve found a welcome crossover at home, too.
Since Wyper and business partner Paddy Kennedy – who have worked for Acme for a decade or so – bought the brand from founders Bridget Dunn and Jeff Kennedy in October 2023, they’ve been working on a new project: a line of plates and bowls. “We felt like it was an evolution,” says Wyper, “and it was something people have been asking for. I don’t have patience, I like to do something now – but to execute it, you need resources and time.”
Eighteen months on, the Classic range is inspired by hospitality serveware and includes two bowls and two plates, large and small, in two different colourways, plain white or with subtle blue touches.
Partly, that’s around keeping things tight and getting them right, and partly that’s because most hospitality kitchens need things that can do double or triple duty: there’s no room for six types of plate. “We wanted something that could be used in lots of different situations, something that could be multi-purpose,” says Wyper. “We don’t need lots of things – we need things that work harder.”
They’re practical and hard-working, verging on no-nonsense, and made from vitreous porcelain. They’re specifically designed so they’re easy to pick up from the table, and so that food is the focus – not the plate. The blue ring on the large plate, for instance, sits just off the lip so that when you plate something in the middle, it frames it, but when you plate something large, the lip disappears completely. Similarly, the blue on the bowls is only on the outside. “We always design for form and function,” says Wyper, “but function is the top priority.”
So too is durability. “That’s one of the most important things for us. The products will go through the dishwasher thousands of times. We wanted them to look better as they age.”
Acme
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