Retail Development by Sybarite in Kuwait, Middle East

Villa Moda Souk al-Manshar Al-Manshar, Fahaheel Kuwait Free Trade Zone Kuwait City, Kuwait Sybarite Architects While the Fahaheel district in Kuwait City is conservative and predominantly Bedouin in culture, it doesn't lack a love of fashion. Although women mainly wear the veil, there is a passion for handbags, shoes, jewellery and other accessories. The client's brief was to bring the past and present together, to create the motley, chaotic feel of a bazaar within a modern luxury department store. A system was conceived of circular pods of different finishes and sizes that are sliced at angles and randomly scattered over the two floors. These pod slices create varying perspectives throughout the store and can be heavily merchandised inside and out to help create a 'souk' feel. Each tenant followed specific design guidelines to ensure their areas worked alongside the client pods, maintaining a cohesive style and look to the overall store. The contemporary backdrop of polished concrete floor, sleek white walls and ceiling together with gloss lacquered finishes and pastel colour scheme create an interesting contrast to the traditional merchant 'stalls' of the pods. A 'street' café encourages customers to relax, creating an traditional atmosphere of community where people can meet, visit and people-watch. Villa Moda Souk al-Manshar - Building Information Client: Villa Moda (Sheikh Majed al-Sabah) Architect: Sybarite, London, UK (Simon Mitchell, Torquil McIntosh, Nicola Lewis) Site Architect: Villa Moda Lifestyle, Kuwait (Abeer Seikaley) Main Contractor: PMI (Project Management Int'l), Kuwait (Ramzi Rizkallah) Photographer: Simon Collins Shop Area: 3150 m² Completed: Apr 2008 Villa Moda Souk al-Manshar Shop Kuwait images / information from Sybarite

Architects: Atkins

picture : Atkins