Brief Explanation

The challenges: getting the store built in Mumbai, incorporating cutting-edge technology, local materials and craftsmanship into the design.

The Brief

The brief was to design a flagship store that inspires consumers to do more with colour in their homes and thus position the brand as the ‘ultimate home décor and colour expert’. Home decorating in India is handled almost entirely by contractors and there is virtually no DIY industry. Consumers have a low level of understanding and involvement in home décor and don’t use much colour in their homes. The design is a completely new flagship format, and surprisingly, does not sell any paint. Its aim is to inspire consumers and drive business to Asian Paints’ network of dealers.

How the final design was conceived

The proposition is a ‘walk-in home décor magazine’. The scheme adopts an editorial approach; presenting products within lifestyle roomsets with easy-to-understand choices, recommendations, top tips and latest décor trends. At the entrance, hundreds of lights suspended in an arch invite guests to choose a colour from a series of pedestals, sending a pulse of the selected colour upwards and creating constant colour shifts across the façade. Interactive features educate and inspire shoppers about colour – how it can affect space, how it can be changed by light, and how it can alter mood.

Indication of how successful the outcome was in the market

‘Feedback to the store has so far been phenomenally positive. We feel we’ve created something engaging and inspiring that has redefined not only perceptions of Asian Paints in our market, but the Indian retail landscape in general’, adds KBS Anand, President of Decorative Business at Asian Paints.