Apps are big business, every brand and its proverbial dog are ushering you in the direction of your preferred app store, to download the latest and greatest in of-the-moment consumer marketing. Thing is, in this saturated market, how do you know if any of them are actually any cop? Last week, we got the chance to road test Peroni‘s Vivi in Stile (Live in Style) app – and not in a virtual sense. Jam-packed with style tips, design articles and stylish city hotspots, the Italian beer’s Brand Ambassador Tom Armstrong took us for a whistle-stop tour of some of the very glamorous destinations that the app itself recommends. And, it’s amazing how much fun you can have in a few hours with a fashionable know-it-all travel guide in your pocket.
As a gentleman who knows a thing or two about London’s hottest spots, Armstrong chose a trio of David Collins designed hotel bars that are featured within Vivi in Stile‘s London (Manchester, Liverpool, Glasgow, Leeds, Birmingham and Bristol are also represented) city guide; kicking off at The Langham’s opulently extravagant answer to a rum shack – Artesian – onto The Berkeley’s iconic and decadent The Blue Bar, before settling down at Basoon (a new swank-fest at the lavish Corinthia Hotel). Yes, there were several quiet words with oneself in the mirrors of the gents – “this IS real, this IS your job!”…
Not wanting to bang on too much about the app itself – it’s free, it’s bloody good, go and download it and see for yourself – the noticeable merit in letting a brand (whose style credentials you can confidently trust) lead you from spot to spot, is that you’re going to end up places you more than likely wouldn’t if you were left to your own devices; even for someone who spends most their time in East London dive bars, the bars of über-exclusive five-star hotels are not nearly as stuffy as you’d imagine – there may have been manta ray skin tiles on the wall, but having fun is certainly not frowned upon.
If you’re hankering after a fix of knowing, stylishly Italian lifestyle – or are simply looking to refresh your repertoire of drinking dens, Vivi in Stile is a pretty splendid place to start. Download it now for Apple and Android – just don’t come crying to us when it’s time to pick up your tab.
Artesian at The Langham
© David Collins Studio
Basoon at The Corinthia Hotel
© David Collins Studio
