Contract Magazine - March 2018 - 66

PHOTOGRAPHY: COURTESY OF GALERIA MELISSA

Column pedestals display
product and create a
gallery-like feel (above).
In the "green room," walnut
details complement a lush
green feature wall by Plantwall
(right and opposite).

Key Design Highlights
The store entrance features
a metal gate bridge surrounded
on all sides by mirrored-glass
walls and floor panels, and
angular LED screens displaying
bright graphics.
Reflections and diagonals
are used throughout the space
to create a transporting,
ultra-modern environment.
The classic cast-iron building's
storefront windows showcase
the interior's digital art.
The subdued environment of
the "green room" is conducive
to customer interactions with
a standout green feature wall
by Plantwall Design.

The next space, the showroom, is the shop's centerpiece,
anchored by a suspended ceiling composed of fin-shaped, milled
white MDF and LED light strips. The lights bend up and down
and funnel your attention to the far end through their narrowing
perspective. Like the ceiling, virtually everything is angled, sculptural,
and flashy: mirrored glass walls (some double mirrored, revealing
ghost-like display cases behind); triangle-shaped hanging plastic
shelves; custom-milled Corian and lacquer tables; vinyl wall
decorations; and even the original white oak floor, with its repetitive
chevron arrangement. All these reflections and diagonals, says Aslam,
evoke Melissa's brash products and create a transporting, ultramodern environment-but they also make the space inside seem
bigger, and carve out ancillary spaces for storage and art display.
Beyond the showroom is the "green room," a darker, relatively
subdued environment (albeit also with mirrored glass walls) meant
for closer interaction with staff and closing sales. Here, cappuccinocolored porcelain floor tile, a dropped walnut slat ceiling, and walnut
veneer benches, shelves, and alcoves complement a lush green
feature wall by Plantwall Design and a milled black Corian desk.
Small spotlights emerge from above the slat ceiling for a soft,
dappled effect.

according to Aslam. "We have to rethink how retail works," he says.
"I don't care how many shoes you sell, you can't afford Broadway.
The value is about what the space does to expand the brand
and engage the customers."
Store manager Patricia Scipioni was initially opposed to the
idea of excluding merchandise from the storefront display, but now
understands its power to wow people and draw them inside. "People
go crazy for this space," she says. "They say they've never seen
anything like it, and call it the coolest place in New York." On Saturdays,
Scipioni notes, the store usually receives around 1,500 visitors, not
to mention thousands more gawking outside-almost all of them
taking selfies. c

Selling a brand by engaging customers
All this spatial variety, reflectivity, and funhouse-like playfulness
helps the company carry out this particular store's ultimate goal,
which is more about selling the brand than its merchandise,
66

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MARCH 2018

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Contract Magazine - March 2018

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