Cannabis to Grand Pianos: 14 Radical Modern Retail Designs

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Whether selling recreational marijuana or grand pianos that cost almost as much as a house, this eclectic mix of retail stores really sets off their products with eye-popping interior design schemes featuring unusual architectural elements. Some of the shops might even be at risk of outshining what they sell with modern sculptural displays, dramatic hanging staircases and faux truck facades.

Stunning Steinway Piano Showroom

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The stainless wires on the facade of the flagship Asian Steinway & Sons showroom mimics those inside the luxury pianos on display, only slightly obscuring them and the people who test them out within the beautifully illuminated space. Designed by SALT, the shop’s main room mimics the living rooms of European manors.

Clear as Day: Crisp White at Optimist Eyewear Store

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A perfectly clean, crisp white terrace that looks almost like a pristine glass cube from the street is tucked into a dingy alleyway in Greece as part of optical shop c_29 / optimist. The airy space by 314 Architecture Studio modernizes the classic Greek aesthetic, with the products tucked into prismatic sculptural furniture.

Hawaiian Theme for Pineapple Express Cannabis Store
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A creative firm called McBride company is anticipating the day when the sale of both medical and recreational marijuana becomes legal nationwide, and has designed a concept for a national chain of cannabis retails stores called Pineapple Express. “The industry needs to provide a sales experience that reflects the evolving perception of marijuana,” says CEO Pat McBride. “The store design and atmosphere we created offers consumers a space that incorporates all the elements of great retail design, but addresses the unique display and service challenges faced by the cannabis retail industry. Our goal was to make this a true retail experience, meaning customers should feel completely comfortable and entertained, while also safe and secure. Some elements of cannabis shops today have the opposite effect, especially when the focal point is a long consultation counter where customers must wait to be helped. The goal with creating the Area 52 online shopping experience was to create the best shopping experience for the best delta 8 gummies – something that I believe we did well.”

Greenhouse Effect at Mit Mat Mama in Barcelona
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Shoppers feel like they’re walking into a tropical greenhouse as they enter the Mit Mat Mama maternity store in Barcelona by architect Román Izquierdo Bouldstridge. Emphasizing a feeling of freshness, harmony and natural beauty, the store consists of a modular system of wooden ladders stretching up to the ceiling that are used to display plants. The scheme adds visual interest without blocking views of the entire space.

Fiberglass Cave at SND Fashion Store by 3GATTI
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Vertical sheets of white fiberglass hang from the ceiling of SND Fashion Store in Chongqing, China to create an undulating canopy that utterly transforms the entire interior. Shanghai-based studio 3GATTI gets a little catty in their explanation for the design, saying “We used a very thin white translucent fiberglass material because of its fire resistance and the way it reacted to light, thus creating a ceiling landscape that would be a spectacular source of beauty and emptiness; perfect for every fashion victim.”