Salt Salon Borough Proves Commercial Spaces Can Be Cultural Destinations Too.

Architecture studio Unknown Works has reimagined what a hair salon can be, transforming a listed Victorian storehouse in London’s Borough Market into Salt Salon Borough—a space where cutting-edge (get it?) acoustics-meet-contemporary hairdressing. This isn’t just another salon fitout; it’s a fundamental rethinking of how sound can shape daily rituals and social interaction. It’s part salon, part cultural venue, part sonic experiment, and I’m here for it all!

Spread across three levels of the historic brick building on Stoney Street, the ground-floor ‘Listening Room’ features cutting stations and a reception area, anchored by large-scale galvanised steel loudspeakers created using roboforming technology. These precisely tuned instruments enable the whole space to shift its vibe throughout the day: mellow mornings, textured afternoons, and immersive evening sessions. After hours, the reception area transforms into a bar for events, because why shouldn’t your salon double as a venue?

Here’s what makes it even better: they’ve incorporated salvaged materials and shelving from Blythe House—the former storage facility for the V&A, Science Museum and British Museum—the same shelves Unknown Works previously used for the Science Museum’s Energy Revolution Gallery. It’s sustainability with style credentials.

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Upstairs, the ‘Cutting Floor’ showcases a continuous stainless steel mirror finished in gradations from mottled privacy sections to mirror-polished reflective surfaces. Suspended Friendly Pressure Pickney loudspeakers anchor the room both visually and sonically, while silicone screens provide sound separation from staff areas.

The third level, the ‘Colour Floor’, takes things up a notch. There’s a half-tonne mirror workstation suspended from original timber rafters—yes, half a tonne—made from ultra-bright stainless steel serving as both functional surface and light diffuser. The genius part? The floor is designed to develop a patina over time, recording the creative process through material staining from dye use.

“This listed Victorian storehouse has been boldly reimagined as a space where sound operates as both material and medium,” says Ben Hayes, Director at Unknown Works. “Every element, from the bespoke loudspeakers to the acoustic furniture, has been precisely tuned to create an entirely new salon experience.”

Sound system design came through collaboration with Friendly Pressure, a specialist studio led by Shivas Howard Brown, whose work celebrates UK soundsystem culture. Every detail supports sonic excellence—even the modular chairs made from recycled foam absorb low frequencies.

Salt founder John Paul Scott, a former electronic music producer turned hairstylist, has strong feelings about salon spaces. “One of the things I love about hairdressing salons is that they are kind of impartial, open spaces. Anyone can come to SALT and be looked after and enjoy it,” he says.

When it came to the Borough brief, Scott wanted to create something ambitious. “The brief was to bring all the things we already do—hair, sound, music, drinks—and elevate it to a completely new level. I wanted to do something that would almost shock people but put Salt Salon on the map.”

Mission accomplished.

Completed in August 2025, this project proves that commercial spaces can be so much more than their obvious function. Salt Salon Borough isn’t just a service destination—it’s a cultural space where architecture, sound and hairdressing converge to create something unprecedented in London’s design landscape.

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At London's Space Talk listening bar, sound isn't just heard—it's seen and felt. Custom speakers act as functional art pieces, while concealed acoustic treatments maintain design integrity without compromising sound quality.

[Images courtesy of Unknown Works. Photography by Henry Woide.]