Combining fashion, beauty, music and art, SIWILAI has opened a new concept retail shop on the top floor of the Central Embassy, a landmark hotel and mall complex in downtown Bangkok.

Designed by Yabu Pushelberg, the 826-square-meter space features wood and glass as the main materials for the interior to express a stylish and retro style, featuring brands such as Common Projects, Pigalle, Engineered Garments and Thom Browne, as well as outdoor balconies and its own restaurant, Rocket Coffeebar.

Merchandise is shown surrounding the central square within nooks, crannies and corners, built to preserve a sense of discovery throughout. Everything within the store environment is bespoke, with a curated, purposeful feel; each detail was considered to reinforce the ethos of the brand. A balance of intricacy and sim- plicity was produced with careful attention to detail. 

Materials are authentic, honest, and not overly processed. They represent a character and rigor found in traditional Thai crafts- manship and a modern Bangkok. The main entrance captures the Thai spirit with three pairs of solid walnut doors carved with pattern devised from a scaled version of the SIWILAI logo, a portal into the ever- changing environment within.

Inspired by the industrial influence and youthful spirit of an artist’s studio, the central event and exhibition space is framed by custom, pivotable gallery cages. This ‘transformative box’ provides a multi-purpose, changeable space within the store to hold events and stage exhibitions. Bordered by white-washed stretch canvas ‘walls’, exposed ceilings and concrete floors, the design capitalizes on a somewhat raw, industrial feel.

Beyond the gallery, a glimpse of the women’s shoe offering is visible through curved natural oak textured wall. A grouping of amorphic cushion-toped rattan ottomans provide seating, adorned with Thai-crafted fabric ribbon. The juxtaposition of hard and soft materials and varying textures accentuate a thoughtful eclecticism. Travelling nearly the entire perimeter of the store, custom metal fins in blackened steel define the women’s brands and collections. Floating groupings of free-standing fixtures overlap one another, peppered with jewelry tables of artfully stacked boxes. 

Playfully articulated, the menswear area is a balance between hard and soft, implied complexity and simplicity. Walls wrapped in canvas are complimented by overlapping graphic rugs in raw textures and natural materials like jute and straw. The relatively neutral environment is punctuated with pockets of richness as with Thai walnut-paneled walls which lead to the men’s fitting rooms.

Communal style tables, quirky benches with turned wood legs and furniture with a dis- tinctly outdoor feel all work together to create a welcoming, relaxed gathering place for interacting and socializing. Capitalizing on the fifth floor location of the store, a pie-shaped patio is replete with lush planters and small scale grouping of tables and chairs, extending the café outdoors. A mix of materials, textures and industrial-inspired elements impart the same youthful, artistic feeling felt throughout SIWILAI.