The Nakamata Laboratory Store is a retail space for Japanese confectionery brand Nakamata. The shop occupies the Maebashi Shed rental space, which our firm designed and completed in 2018. The Maebashi Shed is a flexible rental space nestled between a vast shopping mall and a traditional farming neighborhood in Gunma prefecture, Japan. It is a structure meant to accommodate a variety of uses, acting as a hub to bring vitality to the local community. The simple, gable-roof volume fits effortlessly into its suburban surroundings. The volume is sliced diagonally while the eaves are kept intact, and a glass façade is placed along the cutting plane. The eaves provide shade for the glass, minimizing reflection and allowing the activity inside of the building to be readily observed by passers-by. A skylight running along the roof of the Shed floods the interior with natural light, which can then flow outward through the front of the building. This flow of light parallels the flow of activity that the structure is intended to create—spilling out onto the street and inviting the local community to join in. The Nakamata confectionery store interior was designed to take full advantage of the Shed’s qualities and conceptually engage with Nakamata’s brand identity. The Nakamata brand creates confections that experiment with mixing elements of old and new, familiar and foreign, traditional and innovative. Using the Maebashi Shed as a canvas, we proposed an interior that brings the Nakamata brand concept to life. We aimed for a modest but provocative design that elegantly marries contrasting themes, materials, and colors. The glassed-in kitchen evokes a laboratory, where customers can watch the confectionery process as if it were a scientific experiment. This futuristic feeling is offset by design elements drawn from the traditional Japanese Chaya, or teahouse: an understated seating area and textiles that undulate in the breeze, both dyed in Nakamata’s signature bright turquoise. The energetic color punctuates the modest white wall, which is painted with a subtle gradient finish that invokes the delicate play of light and shadow that is characteristic of traditional Japanese design. The juxtapositions showcased in the interior create visual interest and build a space that is at once stimulating and comfortable, elegant and playful. To take advantage of the Maebashi Shed’s diagonal glass façade, we were deliberate in not only designing the interior space but also the street-facing surface of the building. The shop is divided into three zones—the kitchen, where the sweets are made, the cashier counter, where they are sold, and the seating area, where they can be enjoyed for a quiet tea break. The three zones are displayed across the façade and can be read as a customer approaches the store, or by somebody just passing by. We aimed for an interior which, together with the design of the structure itself, engages the community by telling a story. Our intention is to create a story that everyone is invited to participate in and contribute to.
Nakamata Laboratory Store
Fumiko Takahama Architects
Bronze
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Gudy Herder
Trend Consultant
at Eclectic Trends
Clean and fresh design that invites...
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8
4
6.75
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Leni Popovici
Founding Director and Partner
at KAP Studios
Modern and very minimal design, the...
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Anne-Rachel Schiffmann
Director of Interior Architecture
at Snøhetta
Stunning example on how architectur...
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8
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Veronica Givone
Managing Director Hospitality
at IA Interior Architects
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6.75
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Stefan Weil
CCO
at Atelier Markgraph
High end tasteful freshness. The pr...
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6
6.75
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Justine Fox
Cofounder | Colour Specialist
at Calzada Fox
Clean, fresh space in combination w...
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6.5
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Ruud Belmans
Creative Director
at WeWantMore
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6
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Mengjie Liu
Cofounder
at Sò Studio
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7
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Yifan Wu
Cofounder
at Sò Studio
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Tina Norden
Partner
at Conran and Partners
Clean and contemporary - unusual fo...
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7
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5
6.5
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Sonia Tomic
Senior Associate, Head of Furniture & Materials
at Universal Design Studio
6
7
7
5
6.25
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Omar Abdelghafour
Founder Principal
at Light Space Design
very well executed layout for the f...
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7.75
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Christiaan Fokkema
Partner
at Hollandse Nieuwe
I really like how the shifted inter...
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5
6.5
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Liam Doyle
Principal
at Jump Studios
8
8
8
5
7.25
Designer
Client
Nakamata
Floor area
116 ㎡
Completion
2020