Press Centre
New Retail Design
Creation, innovation and perfection: Since 1895, these values have underpinned the Swarovski philosophy ‘The Poetry of Precision’. Today, the company shows again its strong will to further enhance the power of crystal to enchant the world through the launch of a new retail design.
A Complete Makeover for Swarovski Boutiques
After ten years of successfully operating a unique retail architecture, highly visible through 1150 Swarovski boutiques and concessions in all major fashion capitals around the world; Swarovski pursues its development as a ‘Modern Lux’ brand by creating a fresh showcase to highlight its own branded collections of crystal jewellery, fashion accessories, and home décor objects.
As Robert Buchbauer, member of the Swarovski family and member of the Executive Board, comments: “Swarovski is committed to presenting the sparkling world of crystal to our consumers in a way that exceeds their expectations.”
An Exclusive Retail Design: ‘A Crystal Forest’
Swarovski joined forces with Design Miami, ‘Designer of the Year’ award winner Tokujin Yoshioka to create this enchanting retail architecture.
The concept he designed exclusively for Swarovski embraces a ‘Crystal Forest’ theme, highlighting the infinite possibilities of crystal, and illustrates the deep affinity with the natural world held by both Tokujin and Swarovski. “My initial impression on the Swarovski brand was the luxury of crystals. I have noticed that the beauty, transparency, and poetry of crystals are what harmoniously form the brand philosophy. Moreover, when I pondered how to express the intimate relationship between crystals and nature, I have looked to the forest as a key element of my inspiration,” comments Tokujin Yoshioka. “Tokujin Yoshioka presented to us a concept that perfectly matched our enhanced brand appearance and design language” - adds Robert Buchbauer.
Inside the boutique, surface turns to substance as the ‘Crystal Forest’ comes to life with all walls within the boutique textured with reflective white relief prisms of various lengths. These faceted, multi-layered elements create visual depth and exude an internal rhythm that follows the rules and rituals of nature. An interplay of both vertical and horizontal showcases are integrated into the relief walls, to present products in their element. Within them, crystal figurines resonant with their ode to light and dreams, while jewels with a soul are brought to life.
Lighting is a key feature of the new architecture and Tokujin Yoshioka uses state-of-the-art lighting systems to explore contemporary interpretations of light. He creates a soft ambience within the boutique through indirect light, which forms a “douche de lumière” as it washes over the relief structure featured on the walls. In a captivating play of light and shade, the gleam from the LED illumination in the showcases hits figurines and jewellery alike from infinite angles causing the forest to be bathed in the infini-light of crystal.
With his fascination for the pure energy and life-giving properties of light, Tokujin Yoshioka re-created the Chandelier, a key element featured in every boutique in the new design. Backed by an LCD screen, the immaculately cut acrylic prisms and geometric ‘icicles’ that make up the chandelier, compose themselves rhythmically as music in motion, turning facets, points and lines into moving lights that radiate an exceptional brilliance throughout the boutique.
Tokujin Yoshioka created a multi sensory experience in the new retail architecture. His vision unites multimedia with light and crystal to form an atmosphere totally in tune with Swarovski’s brand identity. The ‘Crystal Forest’ whispers in a language with a music all its own; and multimedia screens present abstract lyrical images together with informative content to consumers: poetry and precision fuse in complete harmony. Crystal masterpieces are displayed in the windows and on moving displays throughout the boutique. These ‘floating stages’ bring the pieces to life as they reflect a myriad of rainbows with every movement.
The ‘Modern Lux’ ambience surrounding the retail design is supported through the use of the highest quality materials, fittings and furniture within the boutique, with all elements designed by Tokujin Yoshioka. The main materials used include acrylic, lacquered white reliefs and mirror stainless steel finishes. While the boutique is white, the play of light on the different materials gives the boutique a delicate spectrum of white with the floor providing a slight contrast to it.
The First Flagship Store: Swarovski Ginza
With the recent openings of the first three boutiques in autumn 2007 in London (Regent Street), Hong Kong (Harbour City) and Boston (Prudential Center), consumers start to enjoy losing themselves in the new enchanting universe of Swarovski and its crystal. Nevertheless, it is in the luxurious and world famous Ginza district in Tokyo that Swarovski will showcase the utmost creative expression of the ‘Crystal Forest’ concept with the opening of its first Flagship Store at the end of March 2008.
For this one-of-a-kind Flagship Store, named Swarovski Ginza, Tokujin Yoshioka also challenges the conventions of design by bringing the ‘inside to the outside’.
Outside the building, featuring an impressive window façade of 9 by 8 metres high, the designer plays through the windows and reinterprets the ‘Crystal Forest’ using thousands of stainless steel prisms to reinvent the reflective relief wall structure also present inside the boutique. This mirror-like façade takes on the movements, lights and reflections from the street. The unfolding metal facets, with their infinite depths and rich abundance, bring an air of optimism and celebration into the everyday lives of passers-by.
Inside, the ‘Crystal Forest’ relief structure embraces the walls of the Flagship Store. Built from acrylic, it consists of a myriad of sparkling prisms creating a heaven of harmony and reflections that will delight consumers. “From the moment you step into the boutique, you wonder whether you are in a forest, jewelled with small crystal objects and pieces of jewellery. Each staged object increases its transparency and sparkles more in the forest with a lighting effect,” the designer adds.
The Flagship Store covers 450 square metres in total, split over two floors. The welcoming ground floor is dedicated to the Swarovski collections including fashion jewellery, handbags and accessories as well as a collection of gifts. Consumers can also purchase the ‘Ginza Limited Edition’, a range of exclusive jewels designed for Swarovski first Flagship Store, and only available in Ginza. The second floor presents the Daniel Swarovski collections, offering couture jewellery, handbags and made-to-order services of our one-of-a-kind crystal apparel. The floor continues with the range of Crystal Living accessories designed for the home and interior decoration. All along their visit in the Ginza Flagship Store, consumers will discover temporary installations themed around Swarovski heritage and poetry.
For the Flagship Store, Tokujin Yoshioka also designed all shop elements from the free standing and wall-mounted showcases, to the innovative lighting design. Indirect lighting within the Flagship Store, together with LED lighting in the product showcases, creates optical effects of infinite reflections, intensifying the feeling of light and space. The floor was especially designed for the Ginza Boutique and features a ‘Terrazzo’ floor encrusted with faceted crystals.
A key highlight of the Flagship Store is the Crystal Staircase leading up to the first floor. Backlit with state-of-the-art LED lighting, the stainless steel structure is filled with thousands of faceted crystals and appears to be floating in a cube of light. Playing an avant–garde role: the poetry of precision envisioned, this Crystal Palace Chandelier named ‘Cascade’ and designed by Vincent van Duysen creates flickering droplets of light that dance across the ground floor as the 5 metre long crystal winter waterfall tumbles alongside the staircase.
The first floor fuses high-end technology and daring design into sentimental wonder. A huge installation of ice-branches designed by Tord Boontje melts together and welcomes visitors to a higher level of wonder. The floor also features a CRYSTALLIZED™ couch from the Italian manufacturer Edra for guests to lay back and relax as they blend into the Crystal Forest that surrounds them, creating an experience that is both aspirational and emotional.
Over 3 tons of crystal have been required to create this unique crystal magical place.
The New Retail Design: A Magical Place
All in all, the ‘Crystal Forest’ retail design creates a heaven of harmony and reflections that will delight the consumers. “From the moment you step into the boutique, you wonder whether you are in a forest, jewelled with small crystal objects and pieces of jewellery. Each staged object increases its transparency and sparkles more in the forest with a lighting effect,” the designer concludes.
The new retail design is a multi-sensory experience, giving visitors the chance to immerse themselves in the seductive brilliance and infinite depths of crystal. ‘Swarovski boutiques are unique magical places and the new retail architecture will ultimately make the brand a tangible crystal experience focused on pleasing the senses’, concludes Robert Buchbauer.This section is to fill in the press text and all the needed information about the event.
