L'Escalier concept store

Arachova, Greece

Add To Collection

Other Projects by ADD

Add To Collection

Lousso M&W

L'Escalier concept store

Arachova, Greece

Firm

ADD

Type

Commercial › Retail Showroom

STATUS

Built

YEAR

2015

SIZE

1000 sqft - 3000 sqft

BUDGET

$50K - 100K

ADD design two sibling stores in Arachova, Greece
In an interval of one year, Athens-based studio ADD was commissioned to design two retail spaces.
The former concerned the turning of an abandoned storage space into a boutique-concept store. The latter revolved around offering a new and strong identity to an existing clothing store.
Our effort was driven by the desire to form a common architectural dictionary shared between the two spaces, thus creating a kind of an open dialogue while satisfying the unique programmatic needs of each space.
The proximity of the two stores along Arachova’s central promenade axis favors the aforementioned strategy. Visitors and by-passers conceive the two spaces as consecutive stops during a single walkthrough the stores of Arachova. The similarity of the design imprint creates the desire to visit both.
The design concept of each store is complementary to each other.
The use of steel as the key material of the design concept marks the common identity shared by the two stores. The similar light patterns create a distinctive atmosphere through the surgical use of LED tapes.
Finally, the carefully designed movement routes reveal a dipolic case study: the former store favoring the customers’ linear stroll whilst the latter enclosing the visitor into a nautilus-like wandering.

L’Escalier concept store

The “trans-formation” of an abandoned former commercial space, situated along the main road of the village of Arachova, into an exhibition space for small products of any kind. The staircase that led to the upper floor- and was formerly separated and hidden by a wall- was chosen to be revealed due to its theatrical presence. The same happened with the bearing rock wall-background that was covered with mortar. The choice to highlight the long axis of the plan and its perspective came through the use of a “skeleton-like” structure of frames constructed from Η steel beams. These are bent in order for their role to be emphasized ˙ they inclose the exhibitional space. The way of exhibiting dictates the way one moves. A catwalk around the slim marble and steel tables, a stroll in front of the steel and glass drawer-showcase and the rhythm of walking given by the repetition of steel and glass jewelry boxes set on the second white background wall. At the end of the axis a marble desk turns the visitor to walk out of the structure and down towards the basement. There, the concrete shelves create the spectacle, while the floor will accommodate the “home” products. The concept of artificial lighting, through LED tape, constitutes the backbone of the project. At first led tape is placed on the frames, stressing the spatial structure while at the same time it has been included in the design of the tables and boxes giving emphasis on the exhibited products as well as on the materials and design details of the furniture. LED and fluorine lamps are being hung from the frame structure, thus completing the concept of the linear exhibitional axis.