SANCAL Headquarters

After 40 years of decorating other people’s singular spaces, we have reached the conclusion that the best way to celebrate our anniversary is by taking aim at own factory, leaving a visible mark of our philosophy on the production process itself.

The result is an inspirational tour for our customers and collaborators, destined to surprise. Three incredible murals, fun signs and four micro-showrooms have been dreamt up to brighten our worker’s spaces and communicate just how central design is to our philosophy. “Not only do we want to turn Sancal into a “tourist destination”, but we also believe that the best way to celebrate our birthday is by giving our people a little art”, explains Elena.

The incredible mural of Agostino Iacurci represents the dignity and knowhow of the artisan, while presenting traditional European industries as heritage to be conserved. The circus-like figures of Ricardo Cavolo remind us that we are large family worth celebrating. The forty masks of Zosen show the passage of time, the face of success and failure, happiness and the problems that we face on a daily basis. “We have to go back to prehistoric times to understand the magical meaning behind cave paintings, however, in the 21st Century we like to think that those involved in the manufacturing process will be just as inspired by the creativity of these murals and that this will result in better products, as if we had cast an ancient spell” comments Esther.

Apart from murals, which without any doubt both liven and light up the production sections, it seemed necessary to draw a suggestive itinerary to get the most out of the tour. This is how the need of redefining and re-marking the corridors was born. To that end, we designed a colourful geometric pattern in which the colour gaining relevance points out the section where we are. A white 10 centimetre-width tape draws the corridor perimetre in which rhombus, circles, squares and rectangles roam freely in a deliberate anarchy. Red, yellow and blue are pure and deep colours that mix together with pastel shades, balancing our moods.

The idea of an alternative itinerary is emphasised at the ceiling thanks to some hanging mobiles created ad-hoc, using circles and squares in the colour of each section. Another ingredient helps us put the cap on these graphs and their message: Serrano ham or la siesta are some traditional concepts that intermingle with more modern ones, as Dracula or tofu, and even with more surreal notions, as chicken breast or vaseline.

The signs are a satiric take on the strange contrast between calendars featuring religious icons or erotica found in workshops this side of the Mediterranean. With this purpose we’ve created a union between cult and popular images, keeping some old favourites like motorbikes, pop stars or sensual women, and contrasting them against contemporary references. They remind us of where we are and reflect our interests. We flip from one extreme to another; after all, our Latin character is somewhat impulsive and spontaneous. “The results have a surreal effect that fascinates us” comments Elena.

The brainstorming process brought us the crazy and practical proposal of showing our products in their natural environment, this providing an additional meaning to them. We’ve accomplished this with the use of four micro-showrooms; the visitor will find our latest designs presented within the factory itself and will witness the production process too.

Each of these micro-showrooms is located in a different production section, so it is as easy as possible for the visitor to learn about how production works. The platforms where the products are exhibited are in totally white to help the visitor detach from the industrial environment around them. As it can be seen, the setting is quite simple but with small touches that make the product stand out against its surrounding.
To top of the celebration, the dining-rooms turn into another micro-showroom, presenting the product in a real situation. We let the colourful corridors and hanging sings conquer the space and change the previous cold dull environment of a rest area into an inspirational place.