TÜRKİYE. Gebr. Heinemann-led joint venture Unifree Duty Free this month opened a Balenciaga luxury store in the international departures zone at Istanbul Airport.
The 72sq m boutique, which represents a stand-alone store debut for the brand in regional duty free, offers men’s and women’s bags, shoes, hats, scarves and other travel accessories such as wallets and phone cases.
The design mirrors Balenciaga’s site-specific ‘Raw Architecture’ concept. According to a statement from the retailer, this inserts “elements indicative of liminal spaces within retail hubs—creating a dissonance of textures that respond to existing structures”.
Smooth, untreated concrete walls and shelving, a poured concrete floor, and industrial-style metal units of display and storage are balanced with a delicate lighting system, a backlit membrane ceiling panel, beige carpet and cream-colored velvet seating, said Unifree.
The design carries echoes of the terminal’s storefronts, which are clad in curvilinear bronze borders.
A corner façade is affixed with a lightbox on one side and two front-lit Balenciaga logos on the other—large and small, above and beside a raw iron steel-framed entrance. ✈
