Asking an English guy who's run Boffi showrooms in Milan and New York to come and run one over here seems a logical idea. The only trouble is, as Steven Salt (pictured top left) readily admits, when you've been out of the country for the last few years, your knowledge of the UK market tends to be a bit limited.

Whether that's likely to be a problem remains to be seen. In fact, on the day I call him up for a chat, the new central London store is still two weeks from being fitted out. But what you do sense is that Boffi is finally getting serious about ramping up its high street presence in the UK, and that the new 650sq m store - the first to be directly owned - represents a bold statement of intent.

"Boffi-owned shops are a key part of our marketing strategy, allowing us to present the company with a co-ordinated image," Salt says. "We haven't promoted ourselves very aggressively in the UK, but we will be with the new store."

Founded back in 1934, Boffi ultimately aims to have at least one showroom in every key city in the world, but its decision to raise its profile in London is well overdue. Until now, the company has been content to display its top-end kitchen and bathroom products in B&B Italia, situated next door, and in Notting Hill-based Alternative Plans. So why now for the new store?

"It's a good question and not an easy one to answer," Salt says after a long pause. You get the feeling that since being drafted back here six months ago he's on what's commonly known as a steep learning curve when it comes to the UK retail climate. Eventually, he decides the new store is simply "a logical progression" and "a continuation of strategy". So how does he expect it to fare in a tightening market?

"It's difficult for me to comment because I haven't been through it here," he concedes. "But we're new and I don't think we'll feel it as much as someone established for many years. In general we do OK in recessions, I've been through them in other countries. There may be less property development but we haven't seen it yet."

The new store enjoys a prime location on Chelsea's Brompton Road, close to rivals like Bulthaup and Smallbone and also to the Conran shop and a host of designer fashion stores. "Our competitors are keeping a close eye on us, that's for sure," Salt says. "We're always happy to be close to the competition. I think the non kitchen people are happy to have us, I'm not sure about the rest."

He also describes his relationship with B&B Italia and Alternative Plans as "delicate" since the plans for a new store were confirmed. But the fact that the brand isn't trying to penetrate the market from a standing start should help it develop more quickly.

The store will feature some of Boffi's latest kitchen products including the Anthea sliding partition system (pictured right), which is new to the UK. It's also the first time Boffi will display its K14 kitchen, which Salt describes as "our most minimal proposal". Worktops are all bevelled at 45 degrees, as are the handleless doors. "Basically we're cutting away any excess," Salt explains. "You don't see any panel thicknesses; everything is cut so you have very clean lines. In all the years I've worked with Boffi, I'd say the K14 is the one for me. I'm excited to be the first shop to have it."

So what's the thinking behind the layout of the store? "We have a department of people at our HQ in Milan that work on showrooms alongside creative director Piero Lissoni," he says. "They propose ideas and then people like myself give local input, things that I feel will work better for the UK market. We try to strike a balance between the needs of the company and the needs of the local dealers."

At first, Salt is guarded on any projection of turnover in the store's first year but he finally reveals he's looking at something like £2m. Average spend is likely to be about £30,000, although in London he estimates it will be in the £40,000-£70,000 bracket.

Initially, there will be a staff of five, both senior designers having a minimum of five years with the company in Milan. With Boffi, Salt says, the company culture is very important. Everyone speaks Italian and the company can call on a specialist team of Italian fitters for the more specialised installations. As if to prove his point, he occasionally barks instructions in fluent Italian to his building team. "It's all going to be very just in time," he laughs.  

What's particularly important to Boffi is to provide a strong visual image. That means giving products space to breathe. Everything is carefully co-ordinated, even to the point of bringing in a stylist from Milan to oversee things like music and flowers. "Our store strategy is to have fewer but larger displays," Salt says. "We've tried to stay true to Boffi's vision and tried not to adapt it too much to the UK market. The idea is to have very high impact. We will only show four very large kitchens. The average space for each one is 50-70 sq m. We have things like an 8m island going in so it should be very dramatic."

On the kitchen appliance side, Boffi is sponsored by Gaggenau. They also plan to do marketing events with Sub Zero and Miele. "There's a definite visual fit between Gaggenau's product and ours," Salt explains, "but we sell just as much Miele."

Having spent two years in the Milan showroom and five in Manhattan, he offers an insight into the requirements of the two markets. Appliances, he says, are the one thing that are very location specific. "In London, people expect the idea of having multi ovens, steam and microwave ovens, double ovens maybe. There's a lot of focus on the appliance side here compared to Milan. People tend to simplify their choices there. Here people come with a very clear idea of what they want and are very well informed."

But when it comes to the top end, how many customers actually regularly cook in their kitchens, and how many just use them as a status symbol? "In Milan everyone cooks but in Manhattan, they tend to eat out a lot more. They're very property savvy. There's a lot of people buying high end kitchens to add value to their property, as an investment as well as being a style statement."

In terms of worldwide sales, Boffi's kitchen/bathroom ratio is about 70/30, but the forecast for this year is for the bathroom side to develop increasingly rapidly. So too is Boffi's export trade. At the moment it's 60% export but according to Salt the Italian market is now saturated. "A few years ago it was 65%. It's stable but not fantastic growth. But the export market, due to the directly owned showrooms, is growing very quickly."

A key focus is to forge strategic partnerships with companies like Phillips for lighting and Elica for extractors. Meanwhile on the bathroom side, Boffi has good relationships with DuPont for Corian and top end brassware specialists like Signorini and KWC. It also distributes sanitaryware from Galicia.

Ultimately, Salt is confident London and the new showroom is a significant step in Boffi's global development, and that the store can happily co-exist with those already selling its products. "Our intention is not to put those guys out of business," he insists. "We're hoping to build on what they've done. If everyone is communicating we feel London is a big enough market for us to co-habit."