sneaker aid store | leaf architects studio

Designed for Sneaker Aid, a retailer specializing in sneakers, the store is located in a 70’s building in the busy city centre of Thessaloniki, Greece.
The shop occupies two levels, the ground floor and the basement with a combined area of 210sqm.
The design team’s main objective was to create a space with a relaxed but refined character that focuses on the selection of high-end sneakers and a small selection of clothing and accessories.
The ground floor’s display area is accessed through an all glass façade which provides abundant natural light counterbalancing the space’s dark colour palette.
A division line is formed on the floor with the use of two different types of floor tiles, timber like tiles and Greystone tiles, signifying the display area and the reception-cashier desk area.
This line continues on the wall and eventually on the ceiling, creating a constant flux of materials.
The reception desk area floor tiles are placed at an angle of 45 degrees and this materiality is reflected on the ceiling in the form of a series of timber slats.
A long reception desk-sales counter is positioned at the centre of the space, overlooking the entire floor. It has a monolithic appearance with carved out portions, creating pockets for merchandise display. Part of the cashier desk is used as an up-lighted display for the store’s most exclusive products.
The interior features subtle metal structures as display components for shoes, T-shirts and other merchandise, which are either fixed on the wall or suspended from the ceiling that seek to highlight the products.
At basement level the majority of the wall’s surface is cladded in stone painted white, creating a 3-dimensional white canvas on top of which all items are superimposed and displayed.
Bespoke furniture is used throughout the space in order to reflect the store’s materiality and meet its specific needs.
A full height steel cladded wall, painted in matte black with an almost invisible door, separates the display area from the storage area. The central part of the cladding sheets is perforated with a series of holes with different diameters, forming a backlit sign of the store’s logo.