Esrawe Studio designs conceptual retail space for Grupo Arca

Esrawe studio has designed a retail, exhibition, warehouse and workspace for Grupo Arca, a global platform for sourcing and disseminating natural and technological raw materials. The new building, located in Guadalajara, Mexico, was aesthetically inspired by the form of a quarry – described by the designers as a typology in itself, a manmade space sculpted through the search for raw materials, described by Edward Burtynsky as a ‘manufactured landscape’.
Grupo Arca wanted a building that expressed its desire to combine the construction industry with the cultural and creative expression of Mexico. They turned to Mexico City-based cross-disciplinary design atelier Esrawe. For them, blending traditionally siloed disciplines has become second nature – founded by designer Héctor Esrawe in 2003, the studio freely crosses from furniture and objects to interiors, commercial spaces, installations and cultural exhibitions and back again.
Taking the quarry as the starting point for the design, Esrawe sculpted an imposing façade that echoes the monolithic nature of a rock face. A small entrance exacerbates the dramatic scale further still, yet inside visitors are confronted by a welcoming space that feels more like a museum lobby than that of a retail space. Creative displays and subtle way-finding guide people towards a Design Center, cafe, and a multipurpose events space.
Architecturally and conceptually, creativity sits side by side with industry. In addition to this cultural building, a second separate volume performs as a ‘functional container’ for a storage warehouse and distribution centre. The warehouse is equipped to help users discover materials through QR codes that with a simple scam provide the description and costs of selected materials – which also feeds into a database of previous purchases, trends and purchasing behaviour. Meanwhile, a huge opening overlooking the surrounding forest, always reminds professionals of the origins of the materials they are browsing.
INFORMATION
For more information, visit the Esrawe Studio website
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Harriet Thorpe is a writer, journalist and editor covering architecture, design and culture, with particular interest in sustainability, 20th-century architecture and community. After studying History of Art at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and Journalism at City University in London, she developed her interest in architecture working at Wallpaper* magazine and today contributes to Wallpaper*, The World of Interiors and Icon magazine, amongst other titles. She is author of The Sustainable City (2022, Hoxton Mini Press), a book about sustainable architecture in London, and the Modern Cambridge Map (2023, Blue Crow Media), a map of 20th-century architecture in Cambridge, the city where she grew up.
-
Willy Chavarria: ‘We’re still so stuck in fashion‘s old guard’
As part of the August 2025 ‘Made in America’ issue of Wallpaper*, we invited three creative powerhouses to comment on the state of the States. Here, award-winning American fashion designer Willy Chavarria speaks on creative resilience, uniting with activist groups, and shaking up fashion’s old guard
-
Six Indian artists reframe the ladies compartment of a Mumbai local train
An exhibition by Method (India) at Galerie Melike Bilir in Hamburg explores a gendered space
-
Frank Lloyd Wright’s The Fountainhead – a shining example of Usonian design – is now on the market
This quintessential Wright home – built in a vibrant mid-century neighbourhood – was named after a novel inspired by the architect
-
In Quintana Roo, a park mesmerises with its geometric pavilion
A Mexican events venue in the state of Quintana Roo rings the changes with a year-round pavilion that fosters a strong connection between its users and nature
-
Casa La Paz is a private retreat in Baja California full of texture and theatrics
Ludwig Godefroy designed Casa La Paz in Baja California, Mexico to create deep connections between the home and its surroundings
-
Pedro y Juana's take on architecture: 'We want to level the playing field’
Mexico City-based architects Pedro y Juana bring their transdisciplinary, participatory approach to the Mexico pavilion at the Venice Architecture Biennale 2025; find out more
-
Tour the wonderful homes of ‘Casa Mexicana’, an ode to residential architecture in Mexico
‘Casa Mexicana’ is a new book celebrating the country’s residential architecture, highlighting its influence across the world
-
A barrel vault rooftop adds drama to these homes in Mexico City
Explore Mariano Azuela 194, a housing project by Bloqe Arquitetura, which celebrates Mexico City's Santa Maria la Ribera neighbourhood
-
Explore a minimalist, non-religious ceremony space in the Baja California Desert
Spiritual Enclosure, a minimalist, non-religious ceremony space designed by Ruben Valdez in Mexico's Baja California Desert, offers flexibility and calm
-
La Cuadra: Luis Barragán’s Mexico modernist icon enters a new chapter
La Cuadra San Cristóbal by Luis Barragán is reborn through a Fundación Fernando Romero initiative in Mexico City; we meet with the foundation's founder, architect and design curator Fernando Romero to discuss the plans
-
Enjoy whale watching from this east coast villa in Mexico, a contemporary oceanside gem
East coast villa Casa Tupika in Riviera Nayarit, Mexico, is designed by architecture studios BLANCASMORAN and Rzero to be in harmony with its coastal and tropical context