Not Your Normal Retail Store

The current retail remit has us designing spaces first and the online presence second – but what if it was flipped? British firm David Chipperfield Architects recently accomplished this for Ssense, an e-commerce label that expanded into a bricks-and-mortar retail store in Montreal, Canada. The store provides a physical counterpart to the online brand, so integrated technology was a priority. Within 24 hours of scheduling an appointment online, products can be delivered and tried on by customers at the store. “E-commerce enables scale but is suboptimal in important ways, especially fostering human connection,” says Ssense CEO, Rami Atallah. “A seamless integration with physical spaces fills the gaps in the customer experience.” Along with spaces for displaying clothing and accessories, the building houses a glassroofed café decorated with concrete benches and tables (above). Wiring is hidden to keep the surfaces as bare as possible. “A grid system is embedded throughout the unforgiving concrete structure, determining the formwork and placement of a hidden convertible socket system for all mechanical, functional, and technical elements,” says Atallah. As Chipperfield tells FRAME, “This is not a sensible project.” But then again, Ssense is not a ‘normal’ company.