With the age of big box stores waning, all those massive abandoned retail facilities could be transformed almost instantly into housing for the homeless using a variety of plug-and-play prefab elements. The research and development studio at KTGY Architecture + Planning in Los Angeles considers what we seem to need space for the most in cities – housing people who tend to fall through the cracks as the cost of living continues to increase – and builds entire complexes of supportive spaces and services within the empty shells of stores like Sears and JCPenney.

“Re-Habit” doesn’t get rid of retail altogether. It just makes the shopping portions of each building smaller, and places bedroom pods, restrooms, kitchens, dining halls, offices, job training rooms and other spaces behind them. Each Re-Habit store would be a community-supported thrift boutique benefiting the transitional housing program.

The main goal of the project is to be self-supporting, the creators explain, by providing training, employment and housing for residents, who rotate chores like working in the kitchen or keeping the dining hall clean. The large, flat roofs of big box stores are ideal for rooftop gardening, recreation and solar panels, and many have outdoor plaza areas that could accommodate small pop-up shops and food carts.

To demonstrate how it could work, KTGY used a typical 86,000-square-foot store (which would often be an “anchor store” in a shopping plaza) and created illustrations showing how it could be used. The firm designed modular led pot units that contain anywhere from 2 to 20 beds, easily slotting into the large, empty spaces. Additionally, the space could support 8 individual apartment units on an upper floor.

“From 2016 to 2017, the homeless population in the U.S. increased for the first time in seven years, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. In the U.S., 553,742 people were homeless in 2017. Housing programs are a meaningful contribution to addressing the homelessness crisis.”

“Living without a home not only endangers individuals’ health and safety, but is also a significant barrier to obtaining and keeping a means of employment. Shelter is a necessity for all, and providing housing is one way to ease suffering and support individuals seeking to break a cycle of poverty.”

Moving way beyond the psychedelic hippie aesthetics of head shops, modern marijuana dispensaries often look more like luxury hotel lobbies, high-end speakeasies and Apple Stores. As more states within the U.S. legalize medical and recreational marijuana, a whole new world of cannabis-adjacent architecture and design lights up. Here are 10 standout dispensaries, including a couple proposals for rooftop pop-ups and even a Cannabis Cruise.

Barbary Coast Dispensary, San Francisco, California

Called “the most decadent pot smoking lounge in the West” by the San Francisco Chronicle, the Barbary Coast Dispensary is modeled on luxury speakeasies in the city’s old red light district, and features a hash bar, smoking lounge and dab bar among stained glass, dark leather and red flocked velvet wallpaper. The owners wanted the space to have a San Francisco flavor, as opposed to the clinical ‘Apple Store’ look favored by a lot of other dispensaries.

New England Treatment Access (NETA), Brookline, Massachusetts

Set into the historic Brookline Bank building, the NETA dispensary features original design by Swiss-American architect Franz Joseph Untersee, who’s best-known for his Roman Catholic Churches. The traditional interiors are definitely a stark contrast to the places people often procured marijuana before it was legal.

Serra Dispensary – Downtown Location, Portland, Oregon

The third location of the Serra dispensary chain to open in Portland, this Old Town gem is set into an 1889 historic-landmarked building with a black-painted facade. Recalling the aesthetics and feel of neighborhood apothecaries, the space features 16-foot ceilings, elegant display cases, high-end smoking accessories and a lush green wall.

Ajoya Dispensary – Louisville, Colorado

You’d almost think the Louisville, Colorado location of Ajoya was a nightclub walking in, with its dimly-lit interiors designed by award-winning firm Roth Sheppard. Customers sit on single-leg stools to consult with bud tenders over a glossy white counter. If some aspects remind you of an Apple store, that’s intentional; in this age of marijuana emerging from illegality in many states, the owners wanted to project an image of safety and health.

Level Up Dispensary – Scottsdale, Arizona

Scottsdale’s Level Up essentially looks like a high-end jewelry boutique, fitted with chandeliers, backlit display cases and a lounge full of leather seating. The dark grey and green color scheme directs the eye right to the product on the shelves.

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The appearance of the city outside – complete with crosswalks and grids resembling aerial views of urban blocks – acts as a transition space between the entrance of a bookstore and the quiet, private spaces beyond. This space by XL-muse, located on the fourth floor of the Réel Mall in Shanghai, references the orderly aspects of urban aesthetics, carrying them from the sunny, exposed main room into the darkened alleys full of floor-to-ceiling shelves.

Street lights gently illuminate the rows of books in these tranquil hallways, organized like pedestrian promenades complete with central park benches and displays. Mirrors are employed to visually double the height of the shelves, making them feel as if they continue up into the sky and stretch far deeper into the building than they really do. Paths direct you from one ‘house’ of books to the next as you explore the shop.

In these atmospherically-lit areas bursting with dark-stained wood, shoppers feel like they’re navigating the city late at night, when the traffic has died down and the streets are eerily silent. The crosswalks continue into the small cafe, stepping right up onto the ceiling and then back out into the showroom, where white pegs inserted into the concrete walls can be pulled or pushed to create display niches.

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

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

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

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

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

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.”

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The temporary nature of pop-up shops seems to inspire a bolder, braver, more experimental approach to retail design, encouraging architects to make use of unexpected materials and play with shoppers’ perception. The resulting spaces are undeniably dynamic and often interactive, grabbing our attention so effectively, it’s wonder we don’t often see permanent stores this creative.

Minimalist COS Shop by Bonsoir Paris

A simple framework system of joints and rods comes together into a geometric installation that serves both as racks for the clothing being sold, and a visual contrast within the stark space. The fuss-free yet graphic style by Bonsoir complements the simple lines of Swedish fashion label COS.

MOMO Recycled Pop-Up By Andy Tong

Made entirely from recycled and reclaimed materials like wood, windows, bubble wrap and mirrors, this pop-up by Andy Tong for MOMO attracts attention in the center of a Hong Kong mall. The designer wanted a temporary space that would stand out against the comparatively sterile corporate identities of the mall brands.

Modular Wood Pop-Up Shop for COS

A series of modular wooden elements come together to form a room-within-a-room reminiscent of studio apartment pods where everything you need is cleverly packed into one tiny space. Another creation for Swedish retailer COS, this pop-up for the Salone del Mobile furniture fair has a cozy feel, drawing in passersby without overshadowing the goods themselves.

Mirrored Philip Lim Pop-Up by Schemata Architects

Schemata Architects play with reflection and symmetry to create a disorienting environment where you’re not sure what’s real and what’s illusion. Designed for fashion label Philip Lim, the space features needle-like pendant lights dripping down from the ceiling, glass-topped illuminated plinths and large mirrors facing each other.

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