PETER ALEXANDER
CHILDREN CONCEPT STORE
PROJECT: Commercial Interiors (Retail)- iscd
CONCEPT: THE MAGIC FARAWAY TREE
When I think of children in pyjamas I think of snuggling up in bed reading fanciful fables
at night to my children. So when conceptualising the Peter Alexander children’s concept store, which is to solely host their children’s range of sleep and lounge wear, I drew inspiration from the story of The Magic Faraway Tree written by Edith Blyton which tells the tales of four children and their adventures in an enchanted wood with a gigantic magical tree.
LAYOUT:
The store windows are designed to draw children and parents in. The East window has a range of terrariums through round viewing windows with various story book scenes depicted. Each terrarium also has a Peter Alexander logo dog "Penelope" that
children are encouraged to find. The North windows host a range of mannequins wearing the current children’s pyjama range in a quirky forest scene. The entry doors are garden gates which swing open to the “enchanted forest” - the store.
Upon entering there is a path of stepping stones leading children to the "climb me tree" - a 2.5 metre wide tree with a ladder and slide. The original tree that I am basing the design off was created by Mikiko Endo, a Tokyo based architect who created
a living zone out of cardboard and wood titled Ko no mo to which translates to “playing and living under a tree”.
The custom joinery is intentionally set away from the play area and flanks the South wall. It has
two levels, one at children’s viewing height and the other for parents to access, encouraging both children and parents to look at the range on offer. Further along the wall towards the service desk, three fitting rooms inspired by a tree house are tactile, finished with synthetic grass and playful bird cage lights.
The concept store, the first of its kind for Peter Alexander, is intended to engage and
interact with children and their carers, giving customers a memorable experience, creating
a bit of buzz and overall increasing brand recall and its customer base in this growing target market.
SCOPE OF WORKS:
Provide flow, furniture, fixture and fitting advice for the entire store including a few custom joinery
pieces to house the clothes ranges and fitting rooms for customers. Shopfront windows included as part of overall design.