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Georg Jensen’s concept store at Copenhagen Kastrup Airport is in the style of a contemporary Danish home |
DENMARK. Luxury lifestyle brand Georg Jensen has opened a concept store at Copenhagen Kastrup Airport in the style of a contemporary Danish home. The store – dubbed The Danish Luxury House – covers more than 200sq m over two floors and aims to create an inspiring shopping experience. Opened at the end of October 2008, it showcases the Danish brand’s homeware, jewellery and watch collections.
Explaining the reason why it chose a home-style environment, the company said: “In a world where consumers have every opportunity to do the dreary and boring daily shopping online, the motivation for actual visiting real life stores falls rapidly. Shopping will be something we do for fun, for inspiration and for interaction with other people – not because we need to. The demands on retailers will be enormous and the competition tremendous. Going shopping we want to be entertained and we want new input, advice and guidance. We demand being recognised as individuals feeling pampered and relaxed at the same time. Going shopping is an adventure allowing us for a time to escape our everyday lives. Georg Jensen’s new store concept The Danish Luxury House is designed just for that.”
Georg Jensen CEO Ulrik Garde Due added: “I want our stores to express what Georg Jensen is really about: state-of-the-art design and quality. Our ambition is to cherish the unique informal Danish way of living through our homes and create an aspirational, entertaining store experience.”
The idea behind the new store concept is to create a luxurious “Danish home” for Georg Jensen and to redefine the consumer experience, from the way products are displayed to the service and time provided by the Georg Jensen employee.
Customers are welcomed and treated with the same warmth and courtesy as if they were guests in a private Danish home and in this way establish an atmosphere in which the customer feels more welcome, relaxed and free, the company said.
The store concept was created by London-based architect Mark Pinney of Mark Pinney Associates, with clear references to Danish architecture and design, particularly the work of Alvar Aalto, Arne Jacobsen, Vilhelm Wohlert and Poul Kjaerholm. The furniture and interior are Danish in origin and include pieces designed by Poul Kjaerholm and Hans J. Wegner.
Continued Garde Due: “We have been in very close co-operation with Fritz Hansen, Dinesen Floors, Kasthall, Kjærholm Productions and Gubi before this important launch and carefully worked on the selection of furniture for our stores together with them and our other partners. As much as this is a Georg Jensen store, it will also be a showcase Danish home for our partners Danish design products. Also the ceilings, carpets, floors and other interior are ‘made in Denmark’.”
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The fireplace in the living area (above right) is surrounded by seating where guests can enjoy the Georg Jensen Icon Wall (above left) displaying the most prestigious pieces from the brand’s silver hollowware and Living collections |
Georg Jensen Icon Wall displays iconic pieces
The new store includes all the elements of a normal home including sitting area, dining area, study and kitchen; a courtyard garden sits between the veranda and the kitchen area.
The fireplace in the living area is surrounded by seating where guests can enjoy the Georg Jensen Icon Wall displaying the most prestigious and iconic pieces from the Georg Jensen silver hollowware and Living collections. The jewellery and watch ranges are shown as if they were part of a private Georg Jensen collection with a dedicated gallery area and also with product displayed in vitrines throughout the home.
In the kitchen area, a large customer service bar forms the counter. The bar acts as the point of sale and also showcases the latest products on the counter-top, in order to prompt discussion and interaction between staff and customer. Stools at this counter allow customers to be served with refreshments while their purchases are gift-wrapped.
In keeping with many Scandinavian homes, the predominant interior material is wood, both in the flooring and in the slatted larch wood wall and ceiling panels. To ensure that the silver and stainless steel products are seen at their best against the dark backgrounds, the colour scheme is a palette of greys deriving from the reflections present in the handmade silverware pieces in the Georg Jensen collection.
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In keeping with many Scandinavian homes, the predominant interior material is wood, in the flooring, walls and ceiling |
Referring to the challenges of creating the new store, Garde Due enthused: “The challenge was to create a store interior that could accommodate the diverse range of Georg Jensen products from flatware and hollowware to watches and jewellery within a single concept. Creating a Georg Jensen “˜home’ rather than a traditional store environment and making that an appropriate and natural setting for a beautifully designed commercial candleholder as well as the most prestigious and iconic silver piece is, to me, the ultimate solution.”
Since the Copenhagen Airport opening last year, the new retail concept has been launched in other Georg Jensen stores across Asia, the US and Europe. In 2008, Georg Jensen inaugurated new flagship stores in New York and Taipei.
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