ESPRIT FLAGSHIP STORE | GK Strid Kayser Studio

Esprit decided to take a commercial unit inside a corner building on Portal del Angel, one of Europe´s busiest commercial streets, were you can find large flagship stores of H&M, Zara, Benetton, etc. Due to the needs for a larger commercial surface area, the first floor and basement of the building were added in order to cretate a total area of 1.500 m2.

This resulted in a complex and difficult refurbishment in order to enhance the impact of the entrance and improve the internal horizontal and vertical distribution. Especially the first floor was a challenge as the structure needed to be altered, all partitions be taken out, and all vertical communications changed in order to make the distribution fit to Esprit´s standards. In order to achieve these changes, we also had to move the elevator and alter the access for the rest of the building.

Rather than taking everything out, we included the original features, materials, and proportions of the building into our design, in line with Esprit’s brand design. As a result, suspended cubes on the upper floor represent the original scale of the rooms of the former noble apartment. Ornamental ceilings were repainted according to the original color schemes, and original tiles were laid out as carpets. The brick vaults in the basement were kept visible, and all installations for the basement were tucked in a pocket between the raised floor of the ground level and the vaults of the basement. This allowed us to keep the vaulted brick ceiling totally free of any installations.