In the Huaihai Middle Road area, which is the most developed area in Shanghai, there remains a Spanish Baroque-style historical buildings built in 1921. The sports brand ASICS decided to open a flagship store here, and we were nominated through a competition. The metropolis of Shanghai, the Western-style buildings of the Republic of China era, and the sports brand from Japan. Our greatest goal was to create a powerful space that could have universality in the midst of a mixture of diverse values.
The existing building was a three-story building divided into small rooms, and had a complicated structure with different heights in the front and back. We focused on how to invite customers to the back and upstairs. We removed all the walls separating the front and back to make it possible to move around as a skip floor.
On the first floor, the shoes are mainly displayed. Aware of the industrial space suitable for products supported by technology, industrial products such as terrazzo, wood wool cement board, mirror surface stainless steel, aluminum louver with wood grain print were used. The shoe section is covered with semi-circular walls made of wood wool cement boards, and products are displayed on luminous acrylic boards. Luminous acrylic panels are repeated on the ceiling made of mirrored stainless steel to create a futuristic sales floor. There is a fitting room in the back, where the embossed stainless steel is illuminated with a bluish-white light, and you can have a mysterious experience like being in the sea.
The second floor is an apparel store that matches lifestyles, so we aimed for a relatively calm space. The ceiling is a coffered ceiling made of wood wool cement board and wood grain aluminum, and line lighting is installed at the edge of the ceiling to create the image of a sports brand's dynamism. The half-floor area is an event space with a different theme for each season, and is separated from the sales area by transparent fixtures with glass shelves.
The third floor is an event space for VIPs that utilizes the structure of the existing building. Unlike the 1st and 2nd floors, the space combines walnut and brass to create a calm atmosphere. Brass-colored expanded metal is stretched on the ceiling, around the spiral staircase, on the back panel of the display, etc., and the lighting gives it a soft, luxurious feeling. It is also a nostalgic space that harmonizes with the Spanish Baroque style of the exterior.
