CASE STUDY: BALLY

HOW LOCAL CULTURE AND MATERIAL INNOVATION CAN REIMAGINE THE RETAIL EXPERIENCE

SINCE BALLY’S FOUNDING IN 1851, THEY OPENLY PRIDE THEMSELVES IN BEING TRAILBLAZERS IN SUSTAINABILITY AND SUPPORTERS OF INNOVATIVE CREATIVES THROUGH THE BALLY FOUNDATION AND CRAFTING FUTURES.

Following Swiss-luxury brand Bally’s launch of their Haus concept store in Milan we were briefed to bring a local narrative to their concept for their latest opening in London’s Regent Street. We approached the challenge in a simple yet timeless way; for a luxury consumer who values brand heritage, honouring Bally Haus’ Swiss pillars of art, architecture and craftsmanship. The launch saw us design a range of furniture and mid-floor fixtures, telling the story of London’s geological foundations and future innovations. A prevalent design theme centers around London clay, from the bricks which built the city, the stability which allowed tunnelling for the London Underground and the formation of the banks of the River Thames, the seam of clay beneath London has been essential to the city’s development, and therefore our conceptual design.

Celebrating local innovation in circular materials, we honored the past and the future of design in the city by reimagining the potential of local waste plastic, collaborating with Londonbased materialist James Shaw. VM detailing integrated Shaw’s materiality, hand extruded from recycled high-density polyethylene and polypropylene. The colour palette across the brick, rammed earth effect and recycled HDPE/PP was inspired by London born, J.W Turner’s paintings of the Swiss Alps. This, alongside abundant natural light which fills the store, commemorates nature intertwining with the man made and the Swiss/British relationship.

Continuing this celebration of innovation, the entrance table is designed to be easily resurfaced, encouraging future collaborations with other sustainable materialist artists and makers. Seen to work as an ever-changing element, this design feature provides the ability to continuously reinvent the artistic aspect of the store.

LONG BEFORE ‘SUSTAINABILITY’ WAS COINED A TERM, BALLY HAVE STOOD BEHIND THEIR SWISS ROOTS, WITH RESPECT FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY. THEREFORE, IT WAS INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT TO BOTH US AND BALLY THAT WE INCORPORATED CIRCULAR PRACTISE IN THE RETAIL DESIGN, PROVIDING A SPACE FOR CREATIVES TO SHOWCASE THEIR FUTURE-THINKING MATERIALISM.

The store was also designed to house the Bally Art Haus Exhibition series, acting as a cultural hub to explore local talent and innovation in materialism. Described by Nicolas Girotto, CEO of Bally, Bally Haus London “hopes to fulfill new post-pandemic needs with multi-functional space that engages local artists to give second life to repurposed materialsoffering new ways of seeing old things- while providing an experiential environment that embraces the excitement of discovery.”

Achieving this goal, in October of 2021, the store exhibited London-based artist Zuza Mengham’s sculptural pieces, which explore the connection between traditional crafts and new methods of making, reflecting a symbiosis to Bally’s longstanding commitment to craftsmanship and design innovation.

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