A.R.E. Awards – Hardline Specialty Store 7,501 – 25,000 sf – Grand Prize

Even before entering the winter sports store, consumers cannot help but notice the natural stone façade paired with a modern, snow-white façade. The two back-to-back cubes are accentuated by large, black-framed windows of various sizes. Inside the space, a snowmaker on the ground floor ensures a feeling of winter. In the children‘s area, a cinema is enclosed by the graphic image of a snowy landscape where forest animals play hide-and-seek.

Animals also appear in the lounge on the upper floor in the form of plaster figures, suspended from the large mirror ceiling that spans the area. A ski simulator on the ground floor allows customers to try out products and get their pictures taken a computer inserts an alpine background for the photo. Tree trunks and pine trees in the partially snow-covered shop windows complete a “Winter in the Forest” look.

Designed by Blocher Blocher Partners