Men garments’ accessories shop

This project of renewal concerns a small premise of 35 square metres only of global surface, articulated in two different levels, the upper of which was formerly used as a storage, while only the lower one, facing the public way, was accessible to the customers, although its yet minuscule surface was encumbered by some very inconvenient metallic stairs connecting both levels. The three main targets that the project had to hit where therefore:
Extend the customers area to the upper level, still keeping a small portion of surface for storage and toilets;
Comprise a newly shaped connection between the two levels which, besides being less encumbering, had to be aesthetically perceived as an invitation to visit the upper floor too;
Make the space appear wider than it was in reality. At the floor level of the upper stage the toilets area has been reduced to its minimum, while as much volume as possible has been kept in the upper part, to stock small items; this gave way to create, on the side accessible to customers, an “architectural” elevation which takes and highlights hang garments. New crouching stairs, covered with pink Portuguese marble, were located within an architectural passage newly opened in the thick intermediate supporting wall, axis with the luminescent glazed door at the bottom of the global perspective, producing in the visitors a strong impulse to overcome the remarkable difference of level and visit the upper floor too. The street window has been widened up to its maximum, furniture have been minimized and recessed into coves expressly carved in the walls, tables and working surfaces have been designed to appear as light as possible while a bright light and smooth white wall surfaces have been used in order to give the illusion of a strong dilatation of this space.