Buying from Australia-based hair and skincare company Aesop is all about the experience: the delight of senses through the designed environment and personal exchange. The approach is best described by Matteo Martignoni, Aesop's general manager:
"We are a multi-sensorial retailer with an interest in unique atmospheres and communication. An inspiring space invites people to explore, to learn, to exchange. A sensitivity to space requires a fine calibration of many invisible factors that all collude to build comfort, warmth, inspiration and ultimately retail success."Aesop successfully maintains a strong sense of brand identity throughout all of its global stores, while creating unique interiors in each and every one.
The company often seeks local design talent and materials, and has worked with architects such as Snøhetta, Paulo Mendes da Rocha, Torafu, and Ilse Crawford to create the unique but very 'Aesop' fit-outs in more than 100 shops.The notion of paying 'tribute to the creative processes, materials and features' is the basis of each store. In fact, Aesop recently launched a website to bring to light its design process, called Taxonomy of Design. 'A digital compendium of [Aesop's] signature stores, the site documents the creation of Aesop stores while celebrating its unique approach to retail architecture and design.Stand-out spaces include a ceiling in Adelaide created using 7,560 amber glass bottles; a store in New York made from more than 400,000 sheets of reclaimed copies of The New York Times and Melbourne's store that features more than 3,000 cardboard shipping boxes.Martignoni says Aesop overarching objective is to do less and do it better, to respect and execute strong ideas well and to bring joy and pleasure to their customers.Take a look at some of the iconic Aesop stores from around the world...
Abbot Kinney, Los Angeles, USA.
Balmain, Sydney, Australia.
The Invisible Dog Art Centre, Brooklyn, USA.
Canberra, Australia.
Elements, Hong Kong.
Hollywood Road: Hong Kong.
Kyoto, Japan.
Saint-Sulpice, Paris, France.
