Flagstore store in Covent Garden’s Seven Dials introducing MALIN+GOETZ iconic apothecary brand. Jonathan Tuckey Design team is behind the architectural design of the retail outlet. Idea Design was appointed to do the lighting design of the Monmouth Street store. The project was completed on the 31st of May and the doors opened to the public on the 7th of June 2016.

The client’s brief is a minimal, sleek interiors with a subtle yet theatrical presence to the street; an inviting and modern store where the products not the architecture are the protagonist. The design and execution of the store is realised on a tight timeframe and budget with a lighting equipment cost under 10K. To respond to time and budget limitations, bespoke luminaires are resourced locally and lighting is integrated into the architectural fabric wherever possible.

Due to the store orientation and daylight restrictions architectural lighting a  design layer playing a major role in the retail experience. The interior surfaces and cladding materials are chosen to generate a pleasant ambience in what is otherwise a small boutique store. The reflective ceiling and dark finishes are both a design challenge and an opportunity; lighting contrast is not underplayed it is celebrated.

The Monmouth Street store lighting is theatrical, sequential and orchestrated around the end user experience; the framed front window is the central stage, the textured pitch black entrance is dramatic, the sleek white reflective ceiling is playful and the warm welcoming interiors draw visitors to the products on display. Lighting helps narrate the story.

The perimeter black shelves are lit unconventionally; bespoke linear LED luminaires suspended from the ceiling are used instead of projectors. The recommended retail light levels are challenged, but a softer ambience compliments well the skincare brand. Accent lighting is only used at the front window display – the central stage, while the shelve illumination is subtle and underplayed. Cove lighting accentuates the perimeter walls, makes the shelves appear floating and provides soft backlighting to the products on display.

The cross shaped pendants above the display and cashier tables are tailor made to replicate the cross symbol of the MALIN+GOETZ brand. The ceiling is composed by a single sheet highly specular fabric. Recessed lighting is not possible and the focus is on the illumination of the products and perimeter walls. This treatment allows a playful composition of ceiling reflections which makes the store fell more spacious.