Clearly targeting a broader consumer demographic than ever before, HARMAY has shifted its retail focus away from premium inner city shopping locations and launched its latest outpost at Universal Beijing Resort, a popular theme park on the eastern outskirts of the sprawling Chinese capital. The multibrand cosmetics retailer tapped Shanghai-based architecture practice and longtime collaborator AIM Architecture to create a fitting interior design. Interestingly, the result blends awe and wonder, inextricably linked with the theme park experience, with contrary elements. More specifically, the chosen aesthetic takes cues from the thrills and experience of a studio soundstage and set, but remains true to the warehouse-style retail culture of HARMAY. Situated alongside Beijing Huanqiu Chengshi Dadao, the theme park’s main shopping artery, the 100 sqm. (1,076 sq.ft) store sees an anonymous façade clad entirely in shimmering metal and features two entrances.
Needless to say, the building’s cinema-inspired front aims to induce curiosity among the throngs of splurging fun seekers. Upon entering the premises, shoppers find themselves in the foyer, a space wrapped in thick metal curtains and a central oval sales counter reminiscent of the lobby of traditional movie theatres. When advancing further into the store, the main retail space unfolds which is inspired by a production room, replete with equipment, lighting, cameras, TV screens, and flooring of steel plates with surface grip texture, and surrounded by custom-made shelves. A backboard lights up to display products, creating an alluring glow and accentuating the design’s play of light and shadow along the way. The new HARMAY store carries the brand’s own line of cosmetics fragrances, but also a selection of products from a wide range of exclusive foreign brands, including Dermalogica, Botanist, Orezza, Rose et Marius and SG79|STHLM.
HARMAY
Universal Beijing Resort, Beijing Huanqiu Chengshi Dadao (Tongzhou)
101149 Beijing
Telephone: +86 400 8906878
Daily 10am-10pm
Publishers Note
Just to be clear – superfuture® is a design blog and not a political commentator. No surprise there. The scope of our content has always been global and borderless, however that can often mean covering projects in countries where we will not agree with the politics or actions of those countries. In a world that’s as screwed up as ever right now, the focus of our support is to those designers, architects and other creatives who aim to make the world a more liveable one – as opposed to people that try their hardest to destroy it. So if a project hits our desk and we like it based on its design credentials, we may choose to publish regardless of its location or creators nationality. superfuture® has always been inclusive and hopes for all current wars, aggression, violence, hate and extremism to end.
