1. Product and presentation
In the words of retail futurist Howard Saunders, people are now looking for “the” product and not “a” product. The huge variety on offer for any service or physical object has gradually transformed every consumer into a connoisseur discerning product quality, properties and provenance. What we buy today has to be the best, has to have a story, be authentic and be either unique or of a clearly identifiable ‘brand camp’. Shops need to offer their customers not just a physical object, but a sense that they are buying something special which enhances their personality and lifestyle. Below are three examples of how those expectations have influenced the design of physical retail space.
![#](https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F1-Designer-Gallery-Make-hero.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=140&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=210&s=958d69d9f1df76b614ceee1c8f69b960 210w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F1-Designer-Gallery-Make-hero.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=280&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=420&s=783781ade4ce373c300eab583954fe2d 420w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F1-Designer-Gallery-Make-hero.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=512&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=768&s=70aa8dcb8ce5bb2e9892f4450dea58e3 768w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F1-Designer-Gallery-Make-hero.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=683&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1024&s=409be11f019939a8878bd6ace4cc8e9e 1024w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F1-Designer-Gallery-Make-hero.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=933&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1400&s=7c63a17d02b41a18b91b4f6249814b10 1400w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F1-Designer-Gallery-Make-hero.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1067&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1600&s=28040f98a80d5f5646a11ce65895d3df 1600w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F1-Designer-Gallery-Make-hero.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1280&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1920&s=d09aaff1ad7a27b1834dd6bf8d5274b0 1920w)
Displaying it like art
The Normann in Copenhagen sells beautiful designer furniture and household objects, but their store looks nothing like a furniture shop – it is curated like a gallery or an art installation. The visitor meanders through curious arrangements of designer household products – cups, chairs, storage boxes, tables, china. The layout of the store changes often, creating a sense that each visit is a one-off opportunity to see the products presented in an unusual, quirky context.
Through its store, the brand inspires its customers to see the lifestyle potential of the products, as objects of art bringing aesthetic pleasure beyond their everyday use. This can only be achieved through inhabiting a physical space.
![#](https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F4-Normann-Store-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=280&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=210&s=c78a30b6d429cbacc53375ac24ed8623 210w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F4-Normann-Store-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=560&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=420&s=bd4a8435e78a67f0801d6760e6151f4f 420w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F4-Normann-Store-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1024&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=768&s=595fac4854a3e92967ab99fbbe55243e 768w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F4-Normann-Store-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1365&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1024&s=c8f9f476791ee92535b4dab1ad5ddb78 1024w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F4-Normann-Store-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1867&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1400&s=8d99bfb030ad2e0e39bb187e53c3b34a 1400w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F4-Normann-Store-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=2133&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1600&s=362b336acf1e8dd8c27ec3064223ad83 1600w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F4-Normann-Store-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=2560&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1920&s=8311501d18206f52eeefdb90a2cf6e56 1920w)
![#](https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F5-Normann-Store-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=158&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=210&s=b26ed0d83f0b4f9dc3089e5fdc06a5a2 210w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F5-Normann-Store-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=315&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=420&s=3f6edf367e779d06dd19d14acd000b1f 420w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F5-Normann-Store-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=576&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=768&s=fb4c6f0778b2026087a90ae9919d8c77 768w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F5-Normann-Store-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=768&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1024&s=9ad74c68d8927694ffd57807078041cc 1024w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F5-Normann-Store-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1050&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1400&s=d7116f7d121312d3535008f9784e14b8 1400w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F5-Normann-Store-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1200&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1600&s=4e6bd2b33aed575b3e3965d0078f1b95 1600w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F5-Normann-Store-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1440&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1920&s=4f63c8c523d1850e0784d480d9835e48 1920w)
Showing the latest
Mall of Scandinavia has what they call The Designer Gallery, a dedicated area where emerging brands can lease smaller spaces over periods of up to six months. For a newly established brand, this helps reduce the financial risks, while allowing it to appear in a high-end shopping centre amongst established global names; it also allows the mall to present lesser-known brands to a customer audience perhaps too used to the standard retail anchors present in every shopping centre.
![#](https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F11%2F2-Designer-Gallery-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=158&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=210&s=4c3b571b514fd17c8eedd80559634867 210w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F11%2F2-Designer-Gallery-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=315&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=420&s=c5613b5dcab9adca4c1a551307b4d6bf 420w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F11%2F2-Designer-Gallery-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=576&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=768&s=f263bfd01e216932fec039ccb507e128 768w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F11%2F2-Designer-Gallery-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=768&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1024&s=f027fe6c7996d46c08a05c34685e59f5 1024w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F11%2F2-Designer-Gallery-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1050&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1400&s=e3554d65e262657989e6fbcc2dcc9886 1400w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F11%2F2-Designer-Gallery-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1200&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1600&s=56129f23bcd14c15619746e7c8f187e8 1600w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F11%2F2-Designer-Gallery-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1440&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1920&s=7aa2e496322fd138450e2da0e62e2c44 1920w)
Be there or miss it!
The Lobby is an innovative retail space designed for the near future where most products will be purchased online; a brand’s presence in a physical store will serve as a way of validating the connection with its customers as well as a marketing tool.
The store owners have recognized that digital brands do not need huge shopping floors, but a showroom-style presence at the social heart of the city, and their leasing model responds to this. The space is rented by the square metre for periods between one and four months, and each shelf, hanging rail and display unit represents a different small brand, designer or product.
![#](https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F6-The-Lobby-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=213&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=210&s=25ab6037df29539178874c68a41eb377 210w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F6-The-Lobby-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=427&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=420&s=a79e034d30b6de00cb8e61a6a8e8e5f2 420w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F6-The-Lobby-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=780&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=768&s=7370805ae93849efc0a919bcdadecbdd 768w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F6-The-Lobby-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1040&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1024&s=2ba876cd1288a228e1a3c7d521d797a3 1024w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F6-The-Lobby-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1422&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1400&s=0c6895e28b41b81653126ebb4cdce900 1400w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F6-The-Lobby-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1625&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1600&s=647344a3f694863636c43555bb129476 1600w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F6-The-Lobby-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1950&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1920&s=835734667ba0b826bf5a77b76475d1f1 1920w)
The space recognises that it’s not square footage that generates revenue and sales, but placing surprising, innovative or unusual products in the correct environment. This is supported by its leasing model allowing for nearly any retailer to appear on the high street, renting as much or as little space as they choose.
Designed to allow for fast layout adjustments and with merchandise changing every month, the store provides a snapshot of the latest and coolest independent brands, to be seen in one place for a limited period only and not to be missed!
![#](https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F7-The-Lobby-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=158&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=210&s=da593f37e5398cd1ab8deef0bdbf6f56 210w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F7-The-Lobby-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=315&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=420&s=fd06bb15506ac13a57b892681a2c6e8e 420w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F7-The-Lobby-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=576&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=768&s=7c06421cf098aecdeac940ca8507109a 768w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F7-The-Lobby-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=768&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1024&s=2f519039de3666fba4f191b90d364168 1024w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F7-The-Lobby-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1050&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1400&s=ed093470a874f18f60b519f4abf645bf 1400w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F7-The-Lobby-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1200&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1600&s=618bf459dd238d7021cdf388441f6b95 1600w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F10%2F7-The-Lobby-Make.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1440&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1920&s=56e9587acbee0238b8e779eafcfa8615 1920w)