Meticulously Calculated, Highly Refined Design

Despite being a global brand, Aēsop garners attention for its store designs, which are produced by emerging architectural and spatial designers. For its Japanese stores, Aēsop has enlisted talents such as Toru Nagasaka of Schemata Architects, Shinichiro Ogata of SIMPLICITY, and Koichi Suzuno of Torafu Architects, who designed the Tokyo Midtown store.

Koichi Suzuno, in particular, has designed six Aēsop stores, including the Shibuya, Kawaramachi, Shin-Marunouchi Building, Yokohama Bay Quarter, and Grand Front Osaka locations, with Tokyo Midtown being his latest. For this project, he designed a compact space measuring 3.8m wide, 5.8m deep, and 3.2m high.

An Approach of "One Shop, One Material"

Regarding the store design for Aēsop Tokyo Midtown, Koichi Suzuno, who visited Aēsop's Melbourne headquarters last year and observed the product development laboratories, stated that he drew inspiration for the design concept of "science = scientific aesthetics" from the orderly white spaces of the laboratories and the clean aesthetic and materiality of experimental equipment.

"Aēsop's store designs are based on an approach of 'one shop, one material,' and for the Tokyo Midtown store, we focused on 'stainless steel.' While considering the contrast with Midtown's commercial spaces, which are primarily based on warm-toned materials like wood grain, we aimed for a design that conveys Aēsop's brand image even in a small space, using white walls and stainless steel," Suzuno explained.

Three Custom Spherical Glass Vessels Create a Laboratory-like Atmosphere

The stainless steel counter at the center of the store features a POS system and a demonstration sink. Three custom spherical glass vessels are connected to a water supply pipe for consultations, which descends from the ceiling. These serve as a place to wash hands before trying various products, and the three glass spheres also act as an eye-catching feature visible from outside the store.

The stainless steel shelves extending to the ceiling, where products are neatly arranged, create a soft impression despite the use of hard stainless steel by incorporating gentle curves. The visual impact of numerous bottles lining the shelves also emphasizes a sense of vertical expansion within the small space, which is not to be overlooked.

Aēsop Tokyo Midtown
Opening Hours | 11:00–21:00 Irregular holidays
9-7-4 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Tokyo Midtown Galleria 2F
Tel. 03-6804-6628