HAYDON SHANGHAI is a multi-brand cosmetics store. Approaching the project, Various Associates extracted distinctive Shanghai-style elements and interpreted them through modern methods. Elements that carry the memory of Shanghai’s exotic old houses, such as reliefs, patterned tiles, wood with a classical tone, pale gold medal, and dark green hue, are combined in a contemporary, creative manner, which stimulates the recollection of past glorious days.

Recollect past glorious days. HAYDON SHANGHAI is a two-storey space. Its first floor occupies parts of the area surrounding a central atrium, while the second floor consists of a whole area surrounding the atrium and a public area of the building. As the store incorporates the building’s public area on 2F, the design needed to take full account of flexibility and fire evacuation. The giant round hollow space in the atrium is the most noticeable feature of the site. Inspired by it, Various Associates took “Circular space station” as the formal design concept. The atrium is integrated with circular structures and radial lines extracted from space stations in classical sci-fi films. The combination of storey-telling narratives and site features together shape HAYDON SHANGHAI.

The circulation route on 1F surrounds the central atrium in a loop, and is linked by mirrored stainless steel stands with gradually increasing heights. The progressive layering enhances products to display. The fixed rhombic mirrors above the stands, along with mirrors adjustable to certain angles on either ends, provide a convenient experience for customers to try on cosmetics. Mirrored surfaces and commodity display arranged in multiple layers, angles and dimensions generate a dream-like magical atmosphere, as if it falls into the time fragment of the past. The dark-toned wooden body of the staircase spirals upwards around a golden reflective round column. Textured glass panels and bespoke wooden handrail featuring hollow-out carvings reveal the perfect match of Shanghai-style and Art Deco style.

“The retro-style staircase twists upwards, creating dreamy experience in combination with the layers of reflective mirrors. When looking up, a scene of future world comes into view. Past and future seem to interweave here, making people forget about time.” Walking upwards along the stairs, customers feel like they’re brought back to old Shanghai and meanwhile can catch a glimpse of Western culture. Eastern and western civilizations integrate harmoniously in this space, creating new order and endowing the space with visual and artistic beauty.

The hollow-out wooden handrail engraved with the brand’s logo, the crack-pattern glass and the bespoke carved gypsum are reminiscent of past glorious days. The brand’s name HAYDON is presented in the form of wooden carvings or by arranging the characters vertically. The customized white gypsum reliefs and storytelling glass partitions enclose a staircase space that gives a sense of detachment from the outside. The bespoke embossed gypsum reveals a distinctive Shanghai style. The green and white ceramic tile floor featuring a matrix pattern is reflected on the mirrored stands, showcasing Shanghai style in a more three-dimensional manner and helping balance the visual composition.

Fusion of retro and futuristic vibes. Materials that evoke past memories along with abundant lines help enrich visual layering, break monotony and strengthen the sense of depth of the space. With a limited scale, those elements create infinite fun in the space. HAYDON’s logo, outlined by dark tone, is erected at the center of the staircase area on 2F. The brand logo installation slowly revolves around the classical golden column, showing the contrast of retro style and sci-fi and giving a humorous feeling at glance. Looking through the round windows, customers will capture a picture of the earth viewed from the universe, which shows fantasy and humor. The century-old building where the store is situated witnessed the “debut” of many local public facilities such as phone, electric lamp, and tramcar. Taking design cues from tramcars in old Shanghai, the high portable cabinets can efficiently form a flexible circulation route for a pop-up display space, whilst creating added commercial value for the space.

The movable cabinets and circular ceiling structures in the store echo moving aircrafts and their orbits respectively. The tall silver round-edged cabinets on 2F are filled with a variety of cosmetics, facing the central point along radial lines. With wheels at the bottom, those cabinets are movable at any time. In addition, the hidden plugs can easily connect with flat sockets on the floor, to satisfy the cabinets’ lighting demands. Cabinets composed of structures at staggering heights are combined to form a circle, to break the limited depth of this circular space. Beside the windows are high circular cabinets, which enclose the entire space and incorporate the original public area into the store.

The second floor inherits the building’s unified style, and meanwhile creates visual highlights that integrate various concepts. The retro-style green leather and the old timber harmonize with each other, accentuating Shanghai-style textures. The silver stainless steel blocks inject a sci-fi futuristic feeling into the space, while the orange shade enlivens the overall atmosphere. The integration of retro vibe and technological elements produce a harmonious contrast. The spatial languages narrate the integration of Eastern and Western cultures. Shanghai-style retro atmosphere and sci-fi absurdity contrast and harmonize with each other through the interaction of art and architecture, giving new interpretation of “Eclecticism” through this cosmetics store based in a century-old Shanghai building.