The new J.J flagship store occupies the first three floors of a Victorian townhouse on New York’s Upper East Side. Previously home to a traditional clothing shop, the space was defined by a Classic Modern aesthetic, with brass, marble, black-and-white checkered flooring, and a rigid sequence of clearly separated rooms. The challenge was to introduce a completely new identity without radically altering the existing architecture.
J.J’s universe is built around spirituality, meditation, personal growth, sisterhood, elevation, light, and vibration, bringing together fashion, jewelry, and home collections within a coherent symbolic language. Starting from the perceived rigidity of the original layout, the project introduces the idea of a round space: a circular architecture inserted within the rectilinear Victorian structure.
Each room contains a new circular or semi-circular environment, conceived as an architecture within the architecture. The circle becomes a symbol of continuity, infinity, centrality, fluid movement, and elevation. Brass portals connect the rooms, acting as symbolic thresholds of passage and growth, while preserving a clear and reversible spatial journey across the floors.
The third floor hosts two key spaces: the VIP Room, dedicated to personal relationships with special clients, and the Temple, designed for meditation and elevation. Conceived as a non-religious spiritual space, the Temple includes a clear directional layout and a symbolic inner altar, integrating the ritual dimension into the retail experience.
Where full circular structures were not possible, semi-cylindrical elements with mirrored walls create the illusion of larger circular rooms. The home collection area follows the same principle, becoming an elongated, immersive wunderkammer illuminated by a decorated skylight.
The existing architecture is treated as a neutral backdrop, with warm dark-white walls, ceilings, and carpeted floors. The new curved surfaces are clad in mother-of-pearl, creating luminous reflections and iridescent vibrations, while brass defines edges, portals, and thresholds.
