Designing with a Purpose

What makes 5 Star Plus unique? 

At 5 Star Plus Retail Design our main focus is brand identity. This makes us competent when it comes to luxury design and branded design in China. We start every project with a thorough research about the brand, its competitors, target market, local regulations, and its surrounding environment. Once we have gathered all the necessary information we can provide unparalleled designs, retail consulting and project management services to international luxury and design brands. Our multinational team is a mix of international and local designers, consultants and project managers. Their designs are based on international standards while taking the local market and its requirements into consideration.

Retail design is without a doubt our passion. We do not only understand retail operations in China but we’re also able to create a design in a most effective way to maximize sales. Our extensive background in Chinese retail operation makes our team experienced in both the in-store operation and the local regulations. 5 Star Plus creates designs that can fulfil marketing targets like visibility, brand exposure, marketing leverage and visitor experience.

What makes the 5 Star Plus design process unique? 

During our design process we always keep in mind what the client would like to express, how the brand is positioned and what the brand message is. Thanks to this we are able to achieve increased brand awareness and brand loyalty which, ultimately, is expected to translate into a higher sales turnover. Here are a few examples from our portfolio to show how it works in real life.

Restaruant Design for THE MISSION

When creating two restaurant designs for THE MISSION at two different locations in Beijing, one key strategy that we utilized was to design every restaurant with a slightly different approach, in order to create novelty and adapt to the local environment. For the first location in China World Mall, 5 Star Plus created a modern flagship store design. We wanted to express their healthy, fresh cuisine through the design so it inspired both the color set and the materials that were chosen for the projects. The flagship store at China World Mall resulted in an artistic restaurant design that conveys a cool vibe that can attract the younger generation. We achieved this effect with an open stainless steel kitchen that promotes cleanliness by allowing customers to view the preparation process. We integrated custom-designed metal elements, a wall sculpture and intelligent lighting.

In comparison, the second location at Central Park Plaza puts more emphasis on feeling good and being healthy. Located beside Chaoyang Park in a residential area, families are the most important target customers in the area, so the design needed to be inviting for them. It had to reflect the wholesome, nutritional value of the food so we have created a fresh and bright restaurant emitting a healthy feel. With an open kitchen taking center-stage as the key feature, the important design elements that support it are the use of bright woods for the walls, polished concrete, natural foliage, and seating designed for different numbers of people.

Store Design for ORA

ORA Creation is chain of multi-brand stores selling different European designer fashion and accessory brands. The store in Solana Mall in Beijing had to be designed to use a reduced budget for maximal impact in order to increase sales. The ultimate goal was to attract passersby and entice them into the store. With this in mind, the 5 Star Plus Retail Design team created a light, conceptual store design that is easily transformable with seasonable changes and other requirements of the brand.

Brand Identity Design for Ti-Capital

For our client, Ti-Capital (Taixin), a Chinese private bank, the team developed a visual design identity concept. The company's name consists of the Chinese characters “Titanium” and “Trust”. This meant the visual design identity had to represent the organization as high-end, stable, trustworthy, safe, and secure. The logo had to be suited to the Chinese market, appear masculine and strong, and communicate power and heritage. How did all these elements appear in the design? How did we reach brand awareness? The designers used light grey, dark red and white colors with a lion as the logo's key element to express trust, authenticity, and a certain formality.

Exhibition Stand Design for the International Biathlon Union 

During the World Winter Sport Expo in 2018, the International Biathlon Union covered 108sqm of exhibition space with 7 exhibitors. They were promoting the sport as a whole to China, providing knowledge to those unfamiliar with the sport. Our design concept received “Excellent Design Awards” during the expo. 5 Star Plus Design utilized energy green and ice blue as the main color scheme. With this color combination and structural design we were able to attract maximum attention to the stand and bring out the space.

Our Future

Based on the examples mentioned above, it is clear that 5 Star Plus Retail Design understands what it means to build up a brand identity and strategically use our services to create a maximum benefit for our customers through creating emotional connections between the customers and the brand.

As for the future, our goal is to maintain an up to date knowledge of the Chinese retail market, regulations and the relevant design trends that help us understand the market development.