Category:

Retail Design Winner

Design Practice:

Callison

Project Title:

Watches of Switzerland, Regent Street

Project Location:

London, UK

Design Practice Location:

London, UK

Watches of Switzerland’s three-storey flagship on Regent Street is more than a watch store; it is a precisely engineered masterpiece.

 

The client’s goal was to create London’s most spectacular watch room synonymous with luxury, customer experience and retail theatre; an extravagant showroom of the finest Swiss watches, capable of handling regular store operations and after-hours gatherings. They wanted not just an exquisite store but a world-famous international retail landmark like no other in the world.

 

Since so many prestigious labels would be housed under one roof, the design needed to support each brand with equal presence and attention while maintaining cohesiveness throughout the space. Smoked glass walls with LED trim and marble floors unite the boutiques while video screens and interactive displays provide navigation. The brands are able to differentiate themselves through signage and graphics, and through custom caselines and finishes.

 

Downstairs, the Calibre Room is light and bright. The space juxtaposes Calacatta marble flooring with walnut and stainless steel fixtures. A nine-panel interactive and multi-lingual touch-screen system with an elegant clock-shaped graphic interface invites customers to engage with the timepieces featured in-store.

 

The store’s iconic “heart”, a glass lift and wraparound marble and stainless steel staircase, ties the space together. Lighting, integrated into the stair treads and metal railing, reflects off the curved, three-storey, fluted glass wall surrounding the stairs, creating an illusion that mimics a watch’s cogs and gears.

 

To further the flagship’s one-of-a-kind retail experience, the store boasts space capable of hosting after-hours events, ‘in-store theatre’ exhibitions, product launches and product anniversary parties. A series of service corridors and a large event catering room are hidden along the store’s perimeter, tucked away from customer view. Customers won’t see employees making sales, shuttling product or setting up for after-hours parties.