Directory

Retail Directory 2009 

Aesop

Zurich

Our obsession with Aesop is so undisputable, it’s probably quite unhealthy on some levels. While we often see rapid expansion as a treacherous road for many retail companies, Aesop founder Dennis Paphitis continues to prove us wrong. Last August, the Australian beauty company forged its way into Switzerland with an illustrious flagship store in Zurich, its third standalone store in Europe. Thoughtfully located in the city’s picturesque old town area, the boutique embodies the wit and charm central to Aesop’s ethos in its design. Working again with architect Rodney Eggleston of March Studio, who co-created the brown bottled ceiling in Aesop’s Adelaide store which we reported on back in November, the showpiece of the Swiss boutique is certainly the clever use of construction hoarding boards as shelving. Installed with metal pipes suspended from the ceiling and fitted with camouflaged tube lighting, the storage structure stands like an installation in the middle of the room, while shrewdly resolving spatial challenges, such as the low ceiling and awkwardly positioned columns. Call us crazy, but our affections for Aesop’s shops are not misplaced. Our three favourite boutiques; Melbourne, Adelaide and Zurich, have been nominated in the London Design Museum’s Awards, which recognises forward-thinking work from around the world. No prizes for guessing whom we’re hoping will win.

Oberdrofstrasse, 2
Zurich
41.4 3541 8700

www.aesop.ch