As of late, a number of luxury fashion brands have increasingly been dabbling in high-profile hospitality venues across the planet, and it looks like this brand strategy is now really taking off. The latest fashion house to join the ranks, and quite unexpectedly so, is Maison Margiela. We dare say, the location of the brand’s very first café on the planet is equally unexpected: Sino-Ocean Taikoo Li, the leading upscale shopping centre in Chengdu. An existing Maison Margiela boutique was expanded from 125 sqm. (1,345 sq.ft.) to 230 sqm. (2,476 sq.ft.) to accommodate the new Maison Margiela Café which, in terms of décor, is an extrapolation of sorts of its latest retail design codes as laid down by Amsterdam-based architecture practice Anne Holtrop. The setting is a monochrome affair, and sees the walls, flooring and furnishings such as the counter, cushioned sofas, stools and side tables captured by beige tuff stone, paired with gypsum cone-shaped standing lamps. Additional seating, comprising of matching tables and chairs, can be found outside on the terrace. The opening of Maison Margiela Café is accompanied by brand activation installations in the form of large-sized branded coffee mugs and a branded van with matching canopy.
Maison Margiela Café
Sino-Ocean Taikoo Li, 6 Zhong Shamao Jie, Shop 1231 (Jinjiang)
610021 Chengdu
Telephone: +86 28 87363662
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.
