Nobuo Araki / The Archetype

Retaw Store Harajuku

Retaw Store Harajuku
© Shimizu Ken

RETAW STORE HARAJUKU

Nobuo Araki/The Archetype

ARCHITECT IN CHARGE
Nobuo Araki

CONSTRUCTION
Kosakusha

MANUFACTURERS
D-Line, Daiko, Flos, Lixil Corporation, Osmo, Sugatsune, Azumaya, Nuprotec, OSMO&EDEL

PROJECT TEAM
Jun Tsujimoto, Shigeru Nakao, Kenta Okamura

LIGHTING
On&Off

PHOTOGRAPHS
Shimizu Ken

AREA
26 m²

YEAR
2016

LOCATION
Japan

CATEGORY
Store, Interior Design

As retaW’s first street level store, retaW store Harajuku functions as a showcase for the fragrance brand.

Retaw Store Harajuku
© Shimizu Ken
Retaw Store Harajuku
© Shimizu Ken
Retaw Store Harajuku
© Shimizu Ken

The space is comprised of three elements (sections) with distinctive functions: “By Product,” “By Fragrance” and “Backspace.”

“By Product” is used to display and introduce the brand’s full range of products.

Featuring display cases of products arranged by category, the section resembles a convenience store, a space designed in a straightforward manner based on its purpose and function. The section also embodies a distinctively Japanese or Tokyo-like style.

Retaw Store Harajuku
© Shimizu Ken
Retaw Store Harajuku
© Shimizu Ken

“By Fragrance” is the section in which customers can experience the brand’s various fragrances. The space incorporates a gently curved surface in order to provide customers with an emotive experience as they sample the fragrances.

Referencing the brand’s name, an inversion of the word “water,” tiles were used for the displays and convey the atmosphere of a domestic space.

“Backspace” is located at the rear of the space. Finished with predominantly wooden materials, the section expresses the warmth of an everyday living space

Retaw Store Harajuku
© Shimizu Ken
Retaw Store Harajuku
© Shimizu Ken

In order for these three distinctively different elements (sections) to be constructed in harmony, the utmost care was taken to balance materials, use unexpected elements, refine section details and colors, use natural light and develop an interior lighting plan.

The space was constructed in a way that resembles adding layers to a meticulous creation.


Retaw Store Harajuku
Floor Plan

Nobuo Araki / The Archetype
T +81 3 54569031 F +81 3 54569032
Nobuo Araki / The Archetype
1412 Shibuya Homes, 2-1 Udagawa-Cho, Shibuya-Ku, Tokyo 150-0042, Japan