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Architects: Barde + vanVoltt
- Year: 2022
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Photographs:Sarah Wijzenbeek
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Manufacturers: CS Rugs , Hans Wegner, Puylaert Designs of the Time, Van Harn
Text description provided by the architects. Calico Club, a high-end fashion retailer in The Netherlands, has launched a new store that’s become a destination for fashion aficionados. At a time when the world feels unpredictable and retailers dial up the stimulation and Insta-worthy backdrops, Calico Club has taken cues from the Japanese zen masters to offer their customers more than exclusive brands—but an environment to nourish creative flow.
With such a loyal following, on-point fashion offering, and a desire to do retail differently, the owners selected an alluring location that’s off-the-beaten-track. Located in a village named Nistelrode in the south of the country, the store needed to offer an experience that’s well worth the journey.
Working with international interior design and architecture firm Barde vanVoltt, the team transformed the 100-year-old farmhouse store into a tranquil space that you can appreciate even more when you see it up close and in person.
The design philosophy is founded in contrast where Dutch heritage and Japanese tradition collide to form an unexpected expression. The floor plan is shaped like a Japanese zen garden and its traditional elements of rock, water, and plants have been interpreted in more modern and abstract ways.
Rocks come to form in jagged whitewashed boulders that double as retail displays, polished concrete flooring, stark gray gravel, and elevated white pebble islands to house collections. Rippled mirrored glass resembles water, and sculpted Japanese plants and trees pop against the rustic red farmhouse exterior. To balance the cooler materials, walnut timber, and linen bring warmth to the interior. The custom counter, cabinets, and fitting rooms are all carved from walnut and lined with linen. Above, the spacious farmhouse ceiling is filled with draped linen to complement rectangular metal clothes racks and soften the store’s acoustics.
While the design is unexpected, the store never feels overwhelming. Display racks and fitting rooms are each given their own defined space to avoid distraction and encourage focus. One example is the Japanese tree featured at the end of the store. Encased in a circular glass bench, the tree and the fashion collection opposite are given their moment thanks to a sheet of curved, rolled metal to separate it from the fitting rooms. At the front of the store, customers are shown the best of the collection with floating glass display cylinders filled with hay. All of this builds harmony and is supported with a screen-free store policy too.
The all-new Calico Club rewards those who seek it. It showcases the best brands in a space unlike any other, in a village you would not think of immediately. An original retail experience that will transform you at first sight.
