CHAGEE Flagship Store (Metro City, Shanghai)

CHAGEE initiated its "Tea Bar" concept and collaborated with STILL YOUNG to develop concept store at Metro City in Shanghai.
The color of white tea is applied to walls, ceilings, floor, the brewing counters, and seats in tandem with a delicate and soft matting texture. The custom-made devices at the bar counter combines the color of black tea with a unique appearance that gives off an enchanting sheen of metal.
Different seating options are provided to meet various needs, such as socializing and working. Wood, bamboo and rattan elements are combined with large areas of plants, conveying a relaxing and cozy ambience within the space. The bar seating behind the windows provides plugs to meet the needs of customers working in the store.
The "Tea Bar" concept spaces are based on the prototype of a teamaking workshop. An 8-meter-long bar counter provides home to a set of custom-made devices. The circulation route of this area is designed to meet the needs for "ordering, brewing and pickup" to ensure the efficiency of the tea baristas and a smooth consumer experience.
The design of the bar intentionally minimizes the visual distraction and makes the products and tea baristas the protagonist of the space. The bar counter becomes the stage of baristas, allowing customers to watch every procedure of tea beverage making, from grinding, extracting to pouring brewed tea, in an immersive way.
The teamaking devices enable a simpler teamaking process than the traditional practice. The complicated procedures are reduced to the more efficient practice of extraction. The devices, including the grinder, the tea-and-coffee maker, the POS machine, and the receipt printer, are all finished with a bronze stainless-steel film, a Michelin-level detail that aims to present the sophistication of new-style tea drinks. A set of dark bronze tea pots are displayed on the wall behind the bar counter, while a long, thin strip of warm light connects the entire space and guides the sightlines of customers.