A. Lange & Söhne harness the power of steel and stone for new Dubai boutique
German watch brand A. Lange & Söhne pay homage to its heritage with a design which is wholly modern
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With a need to be both appealing and functional, designing a watch boutique is not without its challenges. Anthony de Haas, director of product development at German watch brand A. Lange & Söhne, acknowledges the contradictions at play in their new boutique: ‘Together with our architects, we decided on an approach that was inspired by the Bauhaus philosophy of combining craftsmanship, selected materials and technology in one cohesive whole,’ he says; the result is both simple and warm, an inviting environment in which to pause over a watch.
A clash of design details is carefully considered; sharp perpendicular angles and walls of glass unite with an amalgamation of steel and stone, a reference to the company’s home in Saxony’s mountainous Erzgebirge. Architectural details mirror intricate decoration on the watches: ‘Wall fittings feature metal pilaster strips that are bevelled at a 45-degree angle and polished – just like the edges of our watch components,’ explains de Haas.
‘Functionality is very often underestimated,’ adds CEO Wilhelm Schmid. ‘There are a lot of processes in such a boutique – and they simply have to work.’
Perpendicular inter-locking volumes transform the space into functional islands
INFORMATION
alange-soehne.com
ADDRESS
The Dubai Mall, Ground Floor
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
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Hannah Silver joined Wallpaper* in 2019 to work on watches and jewellery. Now, as well as her role as watches and jewellery editor, she writes widely across all areas including on art, architecture, fashion and design. As well as offbeat design trends and in-depth profiles, Hannah is interested in the quirks of what makes for a digital success story.
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