Unicorn Stores HQ by Bean Buro

Unicorn Suppliers (HK) Ltd. was founded in 1985 to function a chain of division merchants and supermarkets from Japan in Hong Kong, with a mission to deliver “high-quality, honest and courteous services of a section store from Japan to customers”. Bean Buro was tasked with creating their headquarters which has special requires to retail store and assessment samples.

The Narrative: A modernised courteous office
We translated Unicorn Stores’ enterprise ethos as a really general and courteous workplace for the workforce. We served them transfer from a common business office set up to a modern day office that is much much more sociable for collaborations though being cozy and soothing. The design utilises various refined Japanese aspects as inspiration.

The Approach: Infusing Japanese roots into the interior
We investigated classic Japanese architecture and translated the concepts into easy timber joinery to generate a variety of bespoke features, such as the reception desk, a gridded ceiling lights technique, and Japanese partition screens. Other Japanese inspirations consist of the use of a ‘noren’ – standard dividers created of organic material, often hung in doorways and in between rooms, and playful Japanese motifs in the graphic design and style and signages.

The Alternative: An open up and integrated neighbourhood
The entrance and reception foyer has been lined in timber to generate a heat and welcoming environment with seating booths which can be utilised by visitors and staff members alike in a cosy setting. The typical workplace is an open strategy, a single big connecting neighbourhood with numerous shared home furniture integrated. Enclosed assembly rooms are located in the core of the place of work with glass partitions to maintain seen connections and crops are incorporated into all the windowsills.

Instead than enclosed offices for the departmental heads, they are in its place connected to the staff as portion of the open up program although nonetheless retaining a degree of privacy by way of the use of a series of bespoke acoustic partition screens with a personalized textile structure. The pantry is an informal place for the staff members to loosen up with versatile café seating. The location also has pegged walls for sharing neighborhood information. Roller blinds are made use of together the pantry windows and enable to bolster the identification of the workplace through tailor made graphic layout.

The Products: Neutral naturals with playful accents
The palette is predominantly timber and white for the architectural surfaces. Many accents are designed in the materials, which include the use of a gradient fluted glass for the partitions of the collaboration booths, playful geometry these kinds of as arcs and circles in red—an interpretation of the brand—and other refined utilizes of colors and graphics on the glass and acoustic partitions. Pink coloured grout is also employed for the tiles in the pantry space to further more inject the brand’s identification into the structure.

We located the standard perform neighbourhood to be close to the windows for ample organic daylight, and the conference rooms in the main with an ethereal lighting structure, to be certain excessive artificial lighting is not necessary. For case in point, the various wall acoustic panels with backlighting assistance to improve the legibility of the rear walls of the room. Carpets have been used in all enclosed assembly rooms and plants have been built-in into the joinery style and design. We also specified low VOC paint and veneer laminates.

The Challenge: A delicate balancing act
The obstacle in conditions of style was striking a delicate stability of making a quite powerful corporation id as a result of the use of colours, gentry, signages and nevertheless ensuring the workplace is a comfortable and relaxing get the job done environment. For illustration, we employed vibrant colors in the front of house reception and the pantry parts to promote strength for heightened social interactions but saved all the typical workspaces quite neutral employing natural materials. The outcome is a place of work that embraces social, collaborative, and versatile functioning.

Bean Buro staff: Lorène Faure, Kenny Kinugasa-Tsui, Christina Standaloft, Isabelle Gin, Savannah Wilkins Consumer: Unicorn Outlets Most important contractor: Element Systems & Supplies Ltd.