New York, London and now Berlin — what better place could there be for sound specialist Sonos’s third concept store than the German capital? The Californian company has been tempting fans of good sound to visit its premises close to the Hackescher Markt in Berlin’s Mitte neighbourhood since the end of April 2018. The store isn’t just a shop space but a location for events and exhibitions. Similarly to New York and London, the interior design concept specifically involved Berlin-based protagonists from the worlds of art and design. Sonos’s interior designers commissioned a graphic designer and artist duo to design the store’s enclosed listening rooms. The furniture specified for the lounge is from the emerging design brand Loehr.

The windows of the store on Oranienburgerstrasse extend across the entire width of house number 83 but the abstract graphics on the high window panes provide the interior with some privacy. As a result, the ambivalent character of the showroom becomes immediately apparent: it doesn’t just aim to be a retail space but somewhere where friends can feel at home. The right spot for furniture pieces by Loehr whose own aesthetic equally oscillates between the public and the private.

The Sonos world covers floor space of about 185 sqm and features white, grey and natural shades. Core elements are two listening rooms created as room-in-room modules. The graphics were designed by Berlin artist Lena Petersen and the artist duo 44flavours. The results are two compact mono spaces, one with a jungle look and the other with a collage of geometric shapes and both rooms have been optimised to ensure an excellent sound quality. Ceilings and walls of the open-plan space are also fitted with acoustic components to ensure the perfect sound experience.

When entering the store, visitors see the elevated lounge area, whose calm colour appears to glow from within. Two acoustic walls, folded like a saw tooth, plus a long sideboard made of oak define the area that can be reached via two steps. A petrol-coloured rug emphasises the home-like appeal. A Euclides two-seater sofa in moss green and a nude-coloured upholstered Euclides chair frame the group with two wine red Tangram side tables at the centre of the ensemble. Due to their slender frames, the red table surfaces almost seem to be floating over the structured rug, creating a composition of subtle complementary contrasts together with the dark-green fabric of the two-seater. The first of the series of exhibitions that the Sonos store will be hosting is a photographic tribute to David Bowie whose brilliance is still shining over Berlin today.

Designed by LOEHR
Photography by Daniel Müller / Sonos