East Meets West

Despite the growth in personal income among Kazakhstan residents in recent years, the young country lacked a major luxury retailer – until now. With flights into the country routinely filled with passengers carrying Saks Fifth Avenue shopping bags, the company knew the time was right to expand its brand to this nation.

This Eurasian country, once part of the Soviet Union, is now the ninth-largest in the world. With its abundance of natural resources – such as metals, minerals and oil – it is the economic heart of Central Asia.

To begin establishing its brand in this corner of the globe, Saks Inc. (New York) and the team at Hambrecht Oleson Design Inc. (Short Hills, N.J.) provided their Kazakh partners with an educational tour of New York retail environments and an introduction to various Saks Fifth Avenue guidelines, including ceiling heights, lighting levels and material selection. According to design principal Karen Oleson, “The design solution represents both a respect for the culture and people of Kazakhstan and the design intelligence of Saks.”

The 91,000-square-foot-store opened last October in the Esentai Mall in Almaty, Kazakhstan’s biggest city. Its three floors of luxury retail space blend Kazakstan’s local flavor – including textiles, artwork and sculpture – with Fifth Avenue standards.

“While adjusting for local market requirements, the Kazakhstan store has many similarities with our stores in the U.S.,” says Saks’ David Pilnick, senior vp of international business ventures. “But unlike our U.S. layouts, this store includes four ‘tunnel stores,’ which are freestanding mono-brand shops that have entry from the mall as well as the Saks store.”

From entrances on the three mall levels, customers are drawn to the store by a silver mosaic wall that serves as a backdrop for the highly recognizable Saks square logo. Shoppers are led through an expansive two-bay cosmetics department by a serpentine ceiling treatment highlighted by illuminated crystal strands suspended from oval shapes. A basket weave lighting plan, with alternating straight bar fixtures, provides the appropriate level of ambient light.

The focal point of the environment is a dramatic three-level escalator well visible from any point within the store. Dancing above the well, a grouping of crystal clouds suspended 27 feet from the ceiling evokes the ever-present clouds hovering above the mountains surrounding Almaty.

Up the escalator is 10022 Shoe, the signature department launched in the New York flagship in 2007. The same Murano glass bubble chandelier found in the Fifth Avenue store highlights the residential furniture and textural feel of the department.

The Saks Café on the third level surrounding the escalator well provides dramatic views to floors below. The open eatery is bordered by string curtains and appointed with sleek black stone counters, a black mirror and white wood floors. A splash of patterned Kazakh fabric on the columns and bright jewel-toned seating are strong local references.

Suspended strands of beads are the common thread that ties the environment together. While the floor plan is open, each family of businesses is delineated by these see-through walls – strands of crystal beads in women’s areas, bronze beads for men’s departments.

VIP shopping clubs are an important part of the store, too. The men’s area has its own mall entrance and its club is complete with a bar and flat-screen TV, all in a setting of luxurious ebony wood. The gates to the club are evocative of the inner workings of a clock. Designed by a Kazakh artist, they’re another example of East meets West in this once-remote corner of the world.

Project Suppliers

Retailer
Saks Inc., New York

Design and Architecture
Hambrecht Oleson Design Inc., Short Hills, N.J.

Fixtures
Orsep, Istanbul

Mannequins/Forms and Props
Adel Rootstein, New York
Pucci, New York
Seven Continents, Toronto
Silvestri, Los Angeles

Decorative Lighting
Line, Almaty, Kazakhstan
Bright Group, New York
Boyd Lighting, New York
Dekor Studio, New York
Moooi, New York
Neenas, New York

Furniture
Design Within Reach, New York
Blu-Dot, Minneapolis
Arteriors Home, New York
Michael Taylor, New York
AtelierD3, Mexico City
Orsep, Istanbul