Client & Brand Summary

Integrated future-ready design firm 4 Dimensions had been assigned to present a store around spices—that was a Spice India store in Kochi. The project would revolve around various themes such as history, geography, health or culinary and others. As spices at their own might not create interest among people, the creative team of 4 Dimensions needed to bring certain creative ideas, which would make the store unique and position the brand as an authentic Indian product. Main objective of the project was to promote spices as a healthy lifestyle product which is suitable for modern way of life. The brand had limited exposure till this point of time, but with the new store, Spice India got geared up to increase their presence.

Design strategy

For the creative team of 4 Dimensions, to create an environment around Indian spices being arranged in an eclectic contemporary-traditional Indian setup was indeed an interesting challenge. The task was not just creating a befitting environment around these assortments, but to create an identity amongst the target audience and help them elevate from their mindset of purchasing spices from the next-door kirana shop. Another primary target audience being the travelers/tourists from various parts of the globe, the Spice India store of 1,176 sq ft had to be more of an experience that would promote Indian spices not only in the country but in international context.

Everybody knows about spices, so the tough part for the team 4 Dimension in creating a store for it was that it should not change colours or patterns according to fashion cycles. Therefore the strategy involved was to create several points of interest within the space that would disperse a lot of facts and visuals, tactile and digital experiences—‘Engage the Customer’—in its true sense! And then the team 4 Dimension wrapped the whole experience in an environment rich in Indian architecture with a contemporary twist. So essentially, one’s journey through the store is more about discovering, just like Vasco da Gama did years ago.

Signature design

The store design signature was the assortment of finishes, textures, shapes and hues designed with Indian architectural language relevant to the contemporary customers. Every element was customised to create the specific language—specially the concept of the Spice Bar, where spices and its various connotations could physically experience to the core along with a digitally integrated Augmented Reality experience for the customers.

Store front design

The three-sided Spice India store situated in a strategic corner of a mall was rather kept very simple and clean to compliment the busy retail interior and provide full inside view. While one side sported the signage in neat composition with the jaali patterns, the other side was kept transparent to allow the store itself to act as window display.

Chosen signage materials

Mostly wrapped with clear glass, the signage/graphic elements were adorned with backlit wood finished letters against a white textured backdrop. The eminent jaali woven with traditional rangoli patterns had been modernised and placed on the façade as an articulation of the age-old fenestrations. Like toranas or ‘greeting garlands’ found at various Indian doorsteps, the metal moulding above the door height running all along the perimeter of the store, was designed to be the first to greet every customer stepping in.

The façade was crafted truly classy in a fusion composition of right balanced mix of Indian traditions with contemporary blends. Implemented at the junction of the main and first side of the façade was a huge hand-painted Indian traditional graphics portraying ancient culture of spice trading, its popularity with many international traders from the past.

It takes just a good in-store designing and fabrication job to uplift the image of a store to a brand new level. This is what 4 Dimensions has done for Spice India store in Kochi. Aptly using tactile and digital experiences revolving around historical facts and visuals, the store gets transformed into a new avatar, portraying Indian traditional value with a contemporary twist and diverting the spice routes for buyers who usually head to kirana grocery shops.

About ‘4 Dimensions’ 4 Dimensions is an award-winning design firm specialised in multi-disciplinary practices of retail designs, architecture, visual merchandising, in-store communication, and more—all devoted to delivering integrated future-ready retail design solutions that translate business of diverse companies into memorable experiences of their customers. Headquartered in Bengaluru, the firm is a brainchild of Nagaraja R and Shyam Sunder K, both from the educational background of fine art and architecture, who bring decades of rich experiences in retail planning, technical detailing and designs. The firm’s multi-disciplinary design and roll-out management team of more than 60 professionals is the vigour behind the unsurpassed creative outputs. To learn more about the firm, log on to: www.4dimensions.co.in