Project Description
COLLECTIVE, a Hong Kong-based international architecture studio, has completed retail store kapok Victoria Park in Hong Kong. Located inside an existing structure on the corner site of a prominent shopping street in the Causeway Bay district, the store features a double ceiling height display staircase and a bright white exterior textured plaster façade.
COLLECTIVE’s design concept is a direct contrast with other retail stores in the area, where most of the shops’ frontages are heavily cladded in materials that have an intention to stand out yet ironically makes each store indistinguishable from one another. kapok Victoria Park is a refreshing concept that focuses on visual transparency, functionality, and spatial clarity. Pedestrians can see the interiors from both streets, experiencing the playful interiors even from afar. The white textured plaster façade is a subtle yet bold defining characteristic, making the store a memorable destination in this shopping mecca.
The interior features plywood joinery that carries European timber accents; signature iridescent chromatised steel and cement floor; uniting to create a casual and relaxed atmosphere that is welcoming to all. The design concept remains minimal to accommodate flexibility in merchandise displays, aligning with kapok’s goal of being a store of many faces, a place for discovery and its refusal to confine itself to a static realm. The iridescent stairway creates a juxtaposition between the height of each step and the human scale, puncturing through the ground floor ceiling into the first floor. The display stairway doubles up as a jewellery closet on the ground floor and as a candle display bar on the first floor.
The interior features plywood joinery that carries European timber accents; signature iridescent chromatised steel and cement floor; uniting to create a casual and relaxed atmosphere that is welcoming to all. The design concept remains minimal to accommodate flexibility in merchandise displays, aligning with kapok’s goal of being a store of many faces, a place for discovery and its refusal to confine itself to a static realm. The iridescent stairway creates a juxtaposition between the height of each step and the human scale, puncturing through the ground floor ceiling into the first floor. The display stairway doubles up as a jewellery closet on the ground floor and as a candle display bar on the first floor.
kapok was founded by Arnault Castel in 2006 with a goal to bring an eclectic yet original collection of products from high-quality brands and craft persons from around the world. Set to open on 3rd February 2021, kapok Victoria Park is COLLECTIVE and kapok’s fourth collaboration, and a continued chapter to manifest kapok’s brand philosophy through the creation of a physical space by COLLECTIVE.
Betty Ng, founder and director of COLLECTIVE says: ‘Our design at kapok Victoria Park is an antithesis to the overwhelming visual stimulations in Causeway Bay. Hong Kong is the most built-up city in the world, so we want to cut through the visual noise with a minimal and clean façade. The design looks as though it is a standalone two-storey house, and it naturally draws attention from afar through the big open windows that allows one to see through and focus on the overscale stairway display. This is an anchor that draws visitors in.
‘Our design approach is parallel with kapok’s philosophy of bringing affordable luxury to the masses – we express this through clarity and cleanliness in our concept.’
Arnault Castel, founder of kapok says: ‘kapok opening a new store near Victoria Park is a nice ‘come back’ story, as we started our adventure in Tin Hau, just on the other side of the park, almost 15 years ago. We have closed the loop, gone full circle. Of course, kapok and the world have changed a lot during these years and we have made sure to keep a good balance between our kapok style and history and leave room for some surprises.’