The Chic Marrakech service

Riad Folie - that was knocked down, rebuilt and finished in December

I am always looking to improve the service I provide Chic Marrakech clients.

Having bought and rebuilt several riads myself before establishing a specialist property agency in the Medina, I fully understand the need to look after clients here in Marrakech and ease them through the various processes invloved in buying, then redesigning and restoring, or rebuilding a riad.

It is my ambition to make every aspect of this fun, straightforward and enjoyable.

I was therefore most proud to have received the following referral from one of my recent clients for whom I redesigned and rebuilt their Medina home. They were a delightful English couple, Trevor Davison (trevor@bcaslimited.co.uk) and Christine Hilton (christine@laresidence.co.uk), and it was a genuine pleasure helping them transform their riad last year.

"Trevor and I bought our riad just off Derb Debachi in the early summer of 2008. It did not rank as a fine example, but rather fitted the size of our pockets. It then rested, gathering desert dust for two years, by which time it had become uninhabitable.

We named it 'Riad Folie' since family and friends thought us mad to have ever acquired the place. Over the months, their doubts became our doubts and the whiff of regret was in the air.

At just that critical moment we were introduced to Grant Rawlings of Chic Marrakech, who was able to see beyond the damp, dirt, dinginess and confined space. It was his inspiration to make the ground floor mostly open-plan, allowing much needed light to flood in. Once we had grasped the revolution he had in mind and shared his confidence that it would be achievable, he then brought on board a team of architects and builders, who under his supervision, made it all happen".

"If we had any doubts, they evaporated when he showed us around his own home, a recently renovated riad, which is a real tribute to his creative abilities.

The entire re-build, which all agreed was necessary, took six months to complete. We made site visits every 4-6 weeks and in the interim Grant provided us with photographs of first the demolition and then the construction. The site foreman, Mohammed, was not only very experienced in the delicate work of riad renovation, but always did his utmost to accommodate any changes we wished to make as the build progressed. There were no short-cuts, the materials and the artisans employed were of the highest standard and it was all completed according to plan".

The limited original space I had to work with, open up and recreate. Trevor and Christine bought what was in effect an original riad that had been cut in half and was badly compromised.

"Throughout those six months, when so much could have gone awry, Grant was a constant reassurance. He was always on hand to anticipate any problems and to ensure that we were consulted when decisions needed to be made. We always felt that living in the medina and being a Marrakchi himself was a significant asset".

"Riad Folie is now finished. It was described just a couple of days ago as a 'diamond'. It does indeed sparkle in our eyes".