IM Café: Two Sides of a Café

WORKSPACES · MADRID

IM Café occupies the former Bar Deportivo on Gabriel Lobo street in Madrid. Despite its name, it functions primarily as IM Signature’s office and showroom, with occasional events. Nula Studio gave the main room a pale palette, reserving the brand’s red for the ancillary spaces.

Stone façade beneath the residential elevation — The stone façade meets the residential elevation above, with a white shade over the street window.

An entrance open to the street

Large stone slabs form an almost continuous street façade, with the door sitting flush when closed. Beyond the entrance, a covered porch lies between the street and the interior, housing a glazed ceramic counter made by Xavier Mañosa (Apparatu).

The street-facing sash window operates with pulleys and counterweights, incorporating fired-clay components made with Volupte Studio. It can serve coffee to neighbours on selected days, while office work and events remain the space’s primary uses.

Metal-framed glass doors between the entrance and main room — Metal-framed glass doors separate the pale entrance hall from the main room, with a wall-mounted counter beyond.

Central table made from transparent coloured panels — Transparent coloured panels form the central table beneath a slender pendant, above a herringbone floor.

Narrow passage between red walls — Red walls flank a narrow passage, with an opening into a pale room at its end.

Rough pale entrance wall and metal door frame — A rough, pale wall meets the metal door frame beside the entrance, with a dark counter projecting from it.

White shade projecting above the stone façade — A white shade projects at an angle above the stone façade, with a window and project signage below.

One table, several uses

A sprayed acoustic finish covers the walls and ceiling of the main room, with rounded corners at the junctions. Herringbone ceramic brick, Campaspero stone and compacted limestone aggregate make up the floor, combining similar tones with different surface textures.

Nula Studio designed the central table from acrylic panels joined by neodymium magnets and assembled on site. It accommodates work, meetings or displays, with a height-adjustable pendant by Nanómetro Estudio above.

A large window in the main room looks onto the courtyard to the south, bringing its planting into view. A cantilevered Campaspero stone bench sits below the window, separate from the central table.

Cups and publications on wall shelves — Wall shelves display cups and publications above glossy red cabinetry beside the pale main room.

Central table and courtyard window in the main room — A long table occupies the centre of the main room. A bench sits below the courtyard window, and an opening on the left leads into a red space.

Shelves and sink against a red-and-white striped wall — Shelves and a sink stand against a red-and-white striped wall, with pale fabric curtains screening the cabinetry below.

Metal-framed glass doors open at different angles — Several metal-framed glass doors stand open at different angles, revealing the central tabletop and red cabinetry.

View towards the entrance from the main room — Looking towards the entrance from the main room, the glass doors are open and daylight falls across the herringbone floor.

Large window overlooking a planted courtyard — A large window overlooks a planted courtyard. Publications rest on the bench below, with the transparent tabletop in the foreground.

Red in the adjoining rooms

Glossy red cabinetry lines one side of the pale main room, concealing the kitchen, equipment and storage. The walls, cabinets, shelves, ladder and floor of the ancillary rooms are also red, matching IM Signature’s brand colour.

Red-and-white striped tiles line the wall behind the sink. Cups sit along horizontal shelves, with linen curtains screening the cabinetry below. This area provides storage and additional workspace, separate from the main room and its adaptable layout.

Slender component suspended beside a window — A slender component hangs beside the window, its surface divided into a smooth pale section and a grooved section.

Dark glazed counter projecting from a pale wall — A dark glazed counter projects from a pale wall, with an irregular support visible beneath.

Open street entrance — The street entrance stands open beside a window in the stone wall, with a white shade above the window.

Metal frame and herringbone floor seen through an amber tabletop — A metal frame and herringbone floor are visible through the transparent amber tabletop, where dark lines overlap.

Cup shelves and pale fabric curtains in the red room — Cups line horizontal shelves in the red room, with pale fabric curtains hanging below the striped wall.

Ladder and tall cabinet at the end of a red passage — A ladder and tall cabinet stand at the end of the red passage; an opening to one side reveals a striped wall and fabric curtain.

Open window in the stone façade — The window in the stone façade is open beneath a projecting white shade, with the IM Café name beside it.

IM Café concentrates the kitchen and storage in red cabinetry and ancillary spaces, leaving the pale main room for work, displays and events. On selected days, coffee can be served through the street window, opening this workplace to its neighbours.

Project credits

Project — IM Café
Location — Madrid, Spain
Design — Nula Studio
Designers — Laia Cervelló Sabaté; Miguel Fernández-Galiano
Client — IM Signature
Lighting — Nanómetro Estudio
Ceramic counter — Xavier Mañosa (Apparatu)
Ceramic counterweight components — Volupte Studio
Photography — Asier Rua; Álvaro Tomé
Images courtesy of — Nula Studio
Original feature and references — Yellowtrace; Neo2; AD España
Editorial adaptation — 01DES

IM Café: Two Sides of a Café

An entrance open to the street

One table, several uses

Red in the adjoining rooms

Resource selection

Access

High-resolution project images

Colorado Home: The Comfort of Home, the Ceremony of a Hotel

Boulder Kitchen: Room for the Marks of Everyday Life

Bulka Café: Wood, Light and Vinyl Records

TS Residence: Bringing the Horizon Indoors