Italian brand Molteni&C has teamed with Belgian architect and interior designer Vincent Van Duysen – its creative director since 2016 and the designer of a new pavilion at Molteni&C HQ in 2022 – to overhaul a historic palazzo in Milan. It's important to note that this is not a flagship store, showroom, or shop. Instead, Palazzo Molteni will serve as an open and flexible location – an 'urban pavilion', as Molteni&C puts it – that embodies its identity and values.
Situated in the heart of Milan, next to Piazza della Scala, Molteni&C's new address at 9 Via Manzoni combines neoclassical architecture with refined, modernist design elements. Van Duysen designed the interior as if it were the home of an art and design collector – an experience that unfolds over the building's seven floors and more than 3,000 sq m.
Situated in the heart of Milan, Palazzo Molteni unfolds over seven floors and more than 3,000 sq m
Since his appointment as creative director in 2016, Van Duysen has overseen the brand's global image, including the design of numerous flagship stores, exhibition stands, and new product lines. His influence has played a key role in defining Molteni&C's aesthetic and solidifying its standing in the design industry.
The opening rounds off what has been a busy year of 90th anniversary celebrations for Molteni & Co spearheaded by the release of 'Molteni Mondo: an Italian Design Story', a comprehensive monograph published by Rizzoli New York that showcases the brand's rich history, collaborations, and design philosophy.
The location will serve as a flexible lifestyle space that embodies Molteni&C's identity and values
Creating immersive 'brand experiences' rather than conventional retail stores is an approach that has gained popularity in the design sector in recent years, with companies such as Restoration Hardware, MetroEighteen and Vipp developing domestic or hospitality spaces that don’t sell so aggressively, but instead offer an opportunity to experience a lifestyle with room to relax, eat, drink, and enjoy art and design.
Palazzo Molteni at 9 Via Manzoni, Milan, is open now and will be officially inaugurated in April 2025, molteni.it
-
Remembering X-girl’s notorious 1994 fashion show, which starred a pre-fame Chloë SevignyA new book by Angela Hill, ‘X-girl Show’ – featuring an introduction by Chloë Sevigny – documents the cult label’s renegade 1990s fashion show, which took place in New York and captured a changing underground look
-
How to spot a fake Lamborghini: inside the sports car manufacturer’s Polo Storico divisionFake or fortune? We talk to the team of Lamborghini experts who can spot a priceless classic from a phoney
-
Meet The Good Plastic Company, rethinking the way we use plasticThis creatively responsible brand supplied, and recycled, the plastic plinths used in Wallpaper’s Milan Design Week exhibition. Here’s how it is reimagining the use and reuse of the contentious material
-
Dine within a rationalist design gem at the newly opened Cucina TriennaleCucina Triennale is the latest space to open at Triennale Milano, a restaurant and a café by Luca Cipelletti and Unifor, inspired by the building's 1930s design
-
20 emerging designers shine in our ‘Material Alchemists’ filmWallpaper’s ‘Material Alchemists’ exhibition during Milan Design Week 2025 spotlighted 20 emerging designers with a passion for transforming matter – see it now in our short film
-
Tokyo design studio We+ transforms microalgae into coloursCould microalgae be the sustainable pigment of the future? A Japanese research project investigates
-
Delvis (Un)Limited turns a Brera shopfront into a live-in design installationWhat happens when collectible design becomes part of a live performance? The Theatre of Things, curated by Joseph Grima and Valentina Ciuffi, invited designers to live with their work – and let the public look in
-
Naoto Fukasawa sparks children’s imaginations with play sculpturesThe Japanese designer creates an intuitive series of bold play sculptures, designed to spark children’s desire to play without thinking
-
Inside the Shakti Design Residency, taking Indian craftsmanship to Alcova 2025The new initiative pairs emerging talents with some of India’s most prestigious ateliers, resulting in intricately crafted designs, as seen at Alcova 2025 in Milan
-
Faye Toogood comes up roses at Milan Design Week 2025Japanese ceramics specialist Noritake’s design collection blossoms with a bold floral series by Faye Toogood
-
6:AM create a spellbinding Murano glass showcase in Milan’s abandoned public shower stallsWith its first solo exhibition, ‘Two-Fold Silence’, 6:AM unveils an enchanting Murano glass installation beneath Piscina Cozzi
