Archinect - News

Foster + Partners unveils latest Apple Store concept for Shanghai

2024-04-03T13:32:00-04:00

The latest Apple Store retail concept from Foster + Partners has been completed in Shanghai. The firm’s newest design for the company is located in Jing’an Park and forms the centerpiece of an urban regeneration that creates a permeable new connection between its site and the adjacent historic Jing’an Temple.

Stefan Behling, Head of Studio, Foster + Partners, describes: “We are delighted to have been given this great responsibility to create this transformative project for Shanghai. Our design reimagines the original plaza as a vibrant new public space, which provides places to sit and relax, drawing people in and respectfully enhancing the setting for the beautiful Jing’an Temple.”

Image courtesy Foster + Partners

Terraced seating placed on top of an elevated skywalk with gallery spaces gives the public a direct view of the Three Kingdoms era temple, framed by seasonal planting and Padang Light stone finishes that are repeated in the store’s walls and flooring.

Image courtesy Foste...

Foster + Partners' newest Apple Store opens at Battersea Power Station in London

2023-06-21T18:24:00-04:00

Apple has officially opened the doors to its newest store in the UK, located at London’s iconic Battersea Power Station, which has undergone an extensive overhaul to convert the building from a former coal-fired power station to a high-end shopping, commercial and residential development.

The Foster + Partners-designed storefront is located on the first floor of the Battersea Power Station, which opened last fall, and marks Apple’s 40th store in the United Kingdom. The Station is also the site of the tech company’s new UK headquarters, which will house 3,000 employees in 500,000 square feet worth of office space.

Image courtesy Apple

As stated by Apple in a news release, the newly opened store was built with universal design principles with the aim of making it an inviting and accessible space. This is reflected through its access routes for wheelchair users, enhanced visual and acoustic clarity, expanded assisted listening systems, as well as its varied table and seating heights.

Image courtesy Apple

Additionally, the company says Apple Battersea is operationally carbon-neutral and runs entirely on renewable energy.

Apple's first flagship store in India, designed by Foster + Partners, opens to the public

2023-04-18T15:30:00-04:00

Apple’s first flagship store in India, designed by Foster + Partners, is now open. It is located in the Bandra Kurla Complex, a business and residential district in Mumbai.

Employing many design elements synonymous with Apple stores around the world, Apple BKC attempts to blur the boundaries between inside and outside: A 26-foot-tall glass façade highlights the double-height volume within and the outdoor areas. Greenery is invited into the store, with a row of ficus trees slotted along the inside of the glazing.

Image: Foster + Partners

The connection between the interior and exterior spaces is further emphasized by a hand-crafted timber ceiling that extends beyond the glass façade to the underside of the exterior canopy. The ceiling is made up of a triangular grid of 450,000 individual timber elements. Each of the 1,000 ceiling tiles is formed using 400 pieces of oak timber (reportedly sustainably sourced) arranged in a lattice woven pattern. This was inspired by the work of cane an...

Foster + Partners-designed Brompton Road Apple store debuts the tech giant's new focus on AR

2022-07-27T14:13:00-04:00

Foster + Partners’ design for the Brompton Road Apple store in London is ready for its debut tomorrow, showcasing the company’s renewed focus on AR and other consumer technologies in what is the latest in a long string of retail commissions between the British architect and the California tech giant.

Image courtesy Apple, Inc.

The design reuses a former arcade structure from 1903 in a way that invokes the form and function of the typology’s original role as an enclosed shopping district and social condenser. The store comes equipped with a suite of naturalistic elements, including a group of 12 welcoming Sicilian ficus trees, in addition to new bio-resin terrazzo wood floors, which intend to reflect the goals outlined by the company’s new green design mandates.

Image courtesy Apple, Inc.

As such, the store aims to run 100% on renewable energies. The new location also features Castagna stone finishings, depth-enhancing mirrors in the Forum area, and plent...

Apple's restored Tower Theatre opens in Downtown LA thanks to Foster + Partners

2021-06-26T09:00:00-04:00

LA’s newest Apple Store is now up and running, showcasing a multimillion-dollar restoration project that brought an icon of cinema past to life in a push to stimulate post-pandemic business downtown with what promises to be the city’s latest tourist lure.

The Apple Tower Theatre officially opened this week after a three year overhaul brought the then-vacant landmark back to life.

Foster + Partners were behind the restoration effort aimed at converting the 94-year-old building into retail space CEO Tim Cook called a “testament to a city rich in culture and diversity” in a Twitter post on Thursday.

Today we opened the doors to our new store in downtown LA — Apple Tower Theatre. It’s a testament to a city rich in culture and diversity. We’re so excited to be a part of DTLA! pic.twitter.com/l4UQmZQ5x4
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) June 24, 2021

Piggybacking off a similar palazzo restoration recently in Rome, the firm worked with Apple and design director Doo Ho Lee to preserve elements of the...

Foster + Partners converts nineteenth-century palazzo into new Apple store in Rome

2021-06-01T18:18:00-04:00

Foster + Partners and Apple have collaborated to create a new Apple store that brings a nineteenth-century site back to life in Rome. Situated on Via del Corso, one of the most vibrant streets in the city, Apple Via Del Corso restores the Palazzo Marignoli, uncovering historic features and opening up a central courtyard.

The design of the store reveals the building’s compelling and multi-layered history by unveiling painted ceilings and frescoes from the 1890s juxtaposed with modern graffiti artworks from the 1950s.

Ettore Ballerini's Dusk was restored and integrated into the new store.

Stefan Behling, Head of Studio at Foster + Partners, said: “The joy of the project was to peel back and rediscover the layers of history throughout the building and revealing its eclectic past, which ranges from the historic painted ceilings and the frescoes by Fabio Cipolla, both from the 1890s, to the more recent graffiti artworks by Afro Basaldella. Palazzo Marignoli has seen so much throughout i...

Foster + Partner's new Apple Marina Bay Sands takes social media by storm

2020-08-31T17:17:00-04:00

Singapore's third Apple store to date, located at the Marina Bay Sands, has caught the public's eyes and has already made its presence on Instagram.

The floating, spherical structure sits near the iconic Marina Bay Sands Hotel in Singapore, designed by Safdie Architects. Designed by long-time Apple collaborator Foster + Partners, the orb-shaped, colorfully lit store has already received fanfare on social media outlets.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Majid Hussain™ | Singapore(@sgmajidhussain) on Aug 30, 2020 at 3:36am PDT
View this post on Instagram A post shared by tony (@tonytitanium) on Aug 29, 2020 at 8:41am PDT
View this post on Instagram A post shared by Yang シーヤン (@onepunchyang) on Aug 28, 2020 at 7:56am PDT
View this post on Instagram A post shared by Rave (@rave.kpop) on Aug 28, 2020 at 4:51am PDT
View this post on Instagram A post shared by Kelvin Heng | 王俊杰 (@kelv.li...

Foster + Partners' cylindrical Apple Central World opens in Bangkok

2020-08-20T11:55:00-04:00

A result of a close collaboration between Apple and Foster + Partners, and Architects 49 Ltd., Apple Central World in Bangkok welcomed its first visitors this month. The new store is located at the heart of Central World Square, one of the city's important urban centers.

The two-story cylindrical structure maintains a sculptural presence at the southern end of the Square. The entire facade is wrapped in two-story glazing and boasts a striking 80-foot-diameter. Within the building, a concave timber-clad vertical assembly anchors the store and holds its vertical circulation.

The centralized staircase is a series of helical turbine blades that cantilever from the wooden structure. Each tread is milled from solid blocks of stainless steel and is polished to provide an intense reflective quality.

Moreover, the 360-degree views around the store give it a unique connectedness to the exterior plaza with its subtle greenery and landscaping. The interior experience blends smoothly with that o...

Foster + Partners debuts seismically resistant Apple store in Beijing's Sanlitun district

2020-08-04T13:28:00-04:00

Foster + Partners has released photos of the firm's new Apple Sanlitun retail storefront in Beijing.

The store is located within a shopping and entertainment district in China's capital city that was originally home to Apple's first store in China back in 2008. The store was recently relocated to a new site by Foster + Partners, which has created a design meant to spark a "new dialogue with the surrounding pedestrian streets, addressing the large open square that is a social focus for the district."

Image courtesy of Chaoying Yang.

Remarking on the recently completed project, Stefan Behling, Head of Studio, Foster + Partners writes via press release, “Apple Sanlitun is all about being open and inviting – visually, physically and metaphorically. The store is a grand place that connects the inside and the outside.”

Image courtesy of Chaoying Yang.

The storefront's prominent site within key circulation nodes within the district prompted the architects to create a space that opens on mul...

Inside Foster + Partners newly remodeled Fifth Avenue Apple Store

2019-09-26T13:38:00-04:00

"Now nearly double the size of its original version with a higher ceiling and more natural light, Apple Fifth Avenue is a brighter, more expansive space, and the perfect stage for customers to discover and try Apple’s newest products...It remains the only Apple retail location open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year," Apple reported in a recent press release.

The design was led by Foster + Partners in collaboration with Jony Ive. The team has introduced a number of new features and changes to the underground retail space. Known by it's iconic glass cube and suspended Apple logo, the newly renovated store sports a new stainless steel spiral staircase, 62 skylights that connect the underground space to the city above, a new area for classes, and of course, extended space to display the newest products.

Image courtesy of Foster + Partners

Additionally, the team chose to dig further into the base of the space to provide higher ceilings, creating a more expansive environment for visitors. Na...

Apple’s Fifth Avenue flagship reopens with famed glass cube and new public plaza

2019-09-21T13:30:00-04:00

Apple’s famous Fifth Avenue flagship reopens Friday after more than two years of renovations. The glass cube has returned as an entrance to the store, set above the newly updated and locust tree-lined public plaza. As 6sqft previously reported, it cost $2 million to remove the cube in 2017 during the Midtown Manhattan store’s expansion.

The cube, originally built in 2006, is designed by Foster + Partners.

Foster + Partners designs Apple's new Cotai Central store, an urban “oasis of tranquility” in bustling Macau

2018-07-02T20:11:00-04:00

In their latest collaboration with Apple, Foster + Partners envisioned the tech giant's new retail store near Macau's Sands Cotai Central resort as a luminescent “paper lantern” that reveals a “tranquil oasis” inside. According to the design team, the store can offer a sense of calm and respite at the heart of bustling Cotai, a gambling and tourist hub.

Apple's Chief Design Officer Jonathan Ive and Senior VP of Retail and Online Stores Angela Ahrendts worked alongside Foster + Partners in designing the project.

Photo © Nigel Young/Foster+Partners.

Carved out from a dense bamboo grove, the cubic building features an external public event plaza and provides pedestrian connections from surrounding buildings. The store's structural frame is supported by three corner columns wrapped in mirrored stainless steel that reflect the colors and patterns of its glass-stone facade.

Photo © Nigel Young/Foster+Partners.

The interior space shows off shimmering stone panels and towering bamboo groves ...

Australians outraged over plans for an Apple store at Federation Square in Melbourne

2018-01-05T14:39:00-05:00

Announced on Wednesday, the two-level glass-walled pavilion was unveiled with a promise from Apple that the planned project "increases public space and provides a daily program of activity to inspire and educate the community." But it's this element of public space that has people a little concerned.

Residents of Melbourne are angered by Apple's plans to locate its new flagship store at Federation Square, a public center commonly used to house gatherings, protests, sports screening, concerts and Council-organized events. The site is also home to the Australian Centre for the Moving Image, the National Gallery of Victoria's Ian Potter Centre, the headquarters for public broadcaster SBS, and the Yarra Building—the latter of which will be destroyed to make room for the store.

Federation Square is a civic center and cultural precinct in the city of Melbourne.

The Yarra Building, a large, deconstructivist structure, houses the Koorie Heritage Trust, an Aboriginal arts and cultural organization that will be displaced by the decision. Apple has promised to foot the bill for the building's demolition and the Trust has plans to move into a larger space also within Federation Square. However, the Yarra building's quartz-like design is in keeping with the deconstructivist character of the ...

Apple's design flaw in its acclaimed Chicago store creates hazards for shoppers

2017-12-29T15:38:00-05:00

The recently opened Apple store in Chicago has been praised by one of the city’s papers as an “elegantly understated… boon to the city’s riverfront,” but perhaps that perception will change after the discovery of a significant design flaw.The structure’s ultra-thin carbon fiber roof was fashioned in the shape of a MacBook Pro but does not have any gutters to catch water, so melting snow has begun to turn into icicles and sliding snow that can harm pedestrians below.

Outside Apple's recent Chicago store signs read: "CAUTION Watch For Falling Snow and Ice" as noted by blogger Matt Maldre. The new design by Foster and Partners was intended as a “town square” experience for the community, and to serve as a flagship design for all future Apple stores. Unfortunately, this design has a flaw in it's carbon roof warding off Chicago shoppers to steer clear of the building.

The roof's lack of gutters creates a potential hazard as melting snow may fall directly on pedestrians. Matt Maldre comments in his blog, “Maybe next time Apple will consider the actual community where their stores are built [...] Y’know, basic things like in Chicago, the weather gets cold. It snows. The snow falls off the roof. Don’t design a sloping roof where the snow can’t be caught or guttered off somewhere.”

A giant MacBook tops out the Foster + Partners-designed Chicago Apple Store

2017-06-27T12:41:00-04:00

Although the original Foster + Partners renderings for the new Chicago Apple Store did not include a logo on its gray, rectilinear convex carbon-fiber roof, construction workers briefly unrolled the trademark white Apple across what now can only be viewed as a giant MacBook (no word yet on whether the store is meant to be in perpetual sleep mode). Here's a video of the unfurling:

What does a $1 million dollar staircase look like?

2016-06-01T13:50:00-04:00

The new building design introduced massive 40 foot sliding glass doors that could one day turn that store into an iCar showroom if they wanted to. The estimated breakdown of the costs started with the shell of the building costing Apple $19 million. Some of the other costs included $1 million on the staircase alone. If there's 30 stairs that $33,333 per stair.

While Norman Foster's "spaceship" design for the Apple Campus has attracted its own share of critiques for possibly reviving older corporate design models, this newly refurbished Apple Store appears to be heading for a far more multi-faceted (and luxurious) future. In an era where many prefer to order online than trek in person, must a brick and mortar store necessarily be flashier to attract and maintain a customer base?

Apple, in the news:

Apple store to take over historic theater in Downtown Los Angeles

2016-05-12T13:26:00-04:00

virtually all of downtown’s brokers and landlords had clamored to attract the tech giant. Only a handful of locations were said to be seriously in the running, all historic sites on Broadway. “Apple is known to do things that are outside-of-the-box and unorthodox,” said broker Gabe Kadosh of Colliers International. “It creates a bigger splash by going in a historic building.” [...] “When it becomes fully known, the pricing is going to skyrocket,” said Kadosh.

Related on Archinect:

Prairie futurism: designs revealed for the new Chicago Apple store

2015-11-18T14:16:00-05:00

The long-rumored Apple store at the gateway to the North Michigan Avenue shopping district won't be a 2.0 version of the famous glass cube that forms an iconic entry into the retailer's Fifth Avenue flagship in Manhattan. It will be more like a high-tech version of Frank Lloyd Wright's quintessentially Midwestern Prairie Style homes, with river views to boot.

The Chicago Tribune obtained a draft report from Chicago's Department of Planning and Development that details plans for a new Apple store alongside the river and adjacent to the Michigan Avenue bridge. Moving away from the iconic minimalism of its flagship Manhattan store, the Foster + Partners-designed building incorporates Frank Lloyd Wrightian influences, in a nod to its particular regional importance.

Specifically, the 20,000 sq. ft. retail space will stand about 14 ft high – about half the height of the Fifth Avenue store – capped by a large, flat, carbon-fiber-reinforced roof with rounded corners. A significant overhang recalls the horizontal lines of the Prairie school, and is intended to provide relief during the sweltering Mid-Western summers. The walls will still be glazed, in typical Apple fashion, enabling sweeping river views.

Similar to the Manhattan Apple store, the most-visible architectural element is in fact an entry pavilion leading down to a subterranean – or, tec...

Apple invites visitors to gaze at its 'spaceship' from new observation deck

2015-07-30T14:12:00-04:00

You’ll will still be able to gaze lovingly upon the ultra-sleek new Cupertino “Spacehip” campus — no drones required. Buried in city documents filed this spring are previously unreported plans for a new visitor’s center — complete with a store and viewing platform. Apple’s 2013 approvals for the massive project included the ability for Apple to build a visitor’s center, but a detailed project description had not been submitted until April.

With the Apple Watch coming soon, Jony Ive is already revamping the Apple Store design for its arrival

2015-02-17T17:34:00-05:00

Apple design chief Jony Ive and retail head Angela Ahrendts are working together on a redesign of Apple's retail stores — a different approach that will make them better suited for selling the fashionable Apple Watch, according to a new report. [...] And while Apple Stores are known for their carpet-less floors, Ive did tell Parker that he overheard someone say they wouldn't buy a watch from a store if they weren't standing on carpet.

The Glass Lantern at Apple Store Istanbul wins top prize in Structural Awards 2014

2014-11-17T18:14:00-05:00

From skyscrapers and bridges to residential and heritage projects, the annual Structural Awards recognize the best in structural engineering excellence and the significant role that structural engineers worldwide serve. Out of this year's shortlist, 12 projects were awarded at the award ceremony in London. Winning the Supreme Award for Structural Engineering Excellence went to The Glass Lantern at the Apple Store in Istanbul.

Here's a few more of this year's winners:

Above: Supreme Award for Structural Engineering Excellence and Award for Commercial or Retail Structures: The Glass Lantern at the Apple Store
Location: Istanbul, Turkey
Structural designer: Eckersley O’Callaghan

Award for Highway or Railway Bridge Structures: Elbebridge Schönebeck
Location: Schönebeck, Germany
Structural Designer: Leonhardt, Andrä und Partner

Award for Community or Residential Structures: Kew House
Location: London, UK
Structural Designer: Price & Myers

Award for Small Practices: Lower Hatea River Crossing
Location: Whangarei, New Zealand
Structural Designer: Knight Architects / Peters & Cheung

Award for Small Projects: The Miles Stair – Somerset House
Location: London, UK
Structural Designer: Techniker

Find more of the winning projects on Bustler.

Previously: Structural Awards 2014 shortlist is announced
Winners of the Structural Awards 2013