Distin Kidny store by All Design Studio

Retail in China may have seen decades of growth due to a huge influx of foreign brands, but now that the consumer market has matured, a wave of homegrown names are increasingly gaining attention, and they do that with a sophisticated product range and very often design-led retail spaces. Local womenwear brand Distin Kidny, which serves a demographic of fashion-savvy professionals, has inaugurated a new store at Longfu Paradise Walk, a large shopping centre in the downtown Guanyinqiao area of Chongqing, one of the country’s affluent first-tier cities. Situated on level B2, the store occupies a 141 sqm. (1,518 sq.ft.) and features an interior design by Shanghai-based architecture practice All Design Studio. The chosen aesthetic takes ample cues from classical Chinese landscape painting, featuring a setting which is infused with local sensibilities yet captured by undulating forms, material contrasts in beige and wood tones, and layered light to create a contemporary shopping environment.

Asymmetrical walls and ceilings mimic abstract brushstrokes—textured washes, dots, and shading, expressing Oriental subtlety through spatial rhythm. The front section of the Distin Kidny store is dominated by as weeping arc of translucent green fibreglass set against a demure backdrop. Its shape and semi-transparency suggest movement, infusing the space with restrained energy, while the soft green hue symbolises the new Spring season. The back section of the retail space, which is home to the fitting rooms and office space, offers shoppers a contrasting setting, but one with equal visual drama. Here, a display table and bench sits right below a lowered ceiling with an elliptic cut-out adorned with cross beams. It’s flanked on one side by a variety of sofas and chairs, while a mirrored end wall optically enlarges the space and also extends the illusion of depth. © superfuture