SSENSE MONTRÉAL is a flagship boutique of firsts. Not only is the five-storey 13,000 sq ft space the first brick-and-mortar store of the avant-garde retail platform – founded in 2003 by brothers Rami, Bassel and Firas Atallah – it is also David Chipperfield Architects’ inaugural Canadian commission.
And it’s one that doesn’t disappoint. Housed in narrow 19th-century structure, SSENSE MONTRÉAL functions as a building-within-a-building. Inside the traditional facade stands a concrete construct, boasting eight minimalist fitting rooms, and a fair faced concrete and glass roofed café, that calls to mind the canteen of a spaceship.
SSENSE MONTRÉAL functions as a building-within-a-building, with a concrete structure housed within a 19th-century facade
A blend of the classic and the contemporary, the double layer space is a symbol of the concept behind SSENSE MONTRÉAL. Not your typical boutique, it acts as a touchpoint between the online and offline shopping experience. Through a newly developed digital interface, customers are able to order from over 20,000 pieces online – by innovative brands including Wales Bonner and Kwaidan Editions – before trying them on in the stark, spotlit and padded bench-lined changing points of the space, all within 24 hours.
‘E-commerce enables scale but it is suboptimal in important ways, especially in terms of fostering human connection,’ says SSENSE co-founder and chief executive officer Rami Atallah, of the concept which allows customers to book personal shopping and merchandising appointments online. It’s a physical dialogue that digital retailers are continually developing. Take, 24 Sèvres, which launched last June, and brings the architectural atmosphere of Parisian store Le Bon Marché to the screen, or Chanel’s decision to partner with Farfetch to bolster its e-commerce output.
SSENSE MONTRÉAL is sublimely futuristic. David Chipperfield Architects – whose luxury retail clients include Bally, Valentino and Brioni – developed a 60-cm grid system throughout the space’s concrete structure, allowing for hidden convertible systems to house mechanical and technical elements. Just as seamless, a ‘vertical lift module’ was constructed to allow for swift storage and delivery of items. With the space opening on 3 May, we can’t wait to place our order.
The 13,000 sq ft space is formed from a concrete structure, its inner workings controlled by an embedded 60 cm grid system
SSENSE MONTRÉAL features eight fitting rooms which span two floors
SSENSE MONTRÉAL’s changing rooms feature stark concrete walls, sleek seating and expansive mirrors
The space also boasts a café with an illuminating glass roof
Customers are able to order from an expansive range of pieces online, before trying them on at SSENSE MONTRÉAL within 24 hours
INFORMATION
For more information, visit the SSENSE website, and the David Chipperfield Architects website
ADDRESS
418 rue Saint Sulpice
Montreal
QC H2Y 2V5
Canada
-
Three new coffee makers for a contemporary brew, from a casual cup to a full-on branded espressoThree new coffee makers, from AeroPress, Jura and Porsche x La Marzocco, range from the defiantly manual to the bells and whistles of a traditional countertop espresso machine
-
Don't miss Luxembourg's retro-futuristic lab pavilion in VeniceAs the Venice Biennale enters its last few weeks, catch 'A Comparative Dialogue Act' at the Luxembourg Pavilion
-
A Berlin park atop an office building offers a new model of urban landscapingA Berlin park and office space by Grüntuch Ernst Architeken offer a symbiotic relationship between urban design and green living materials
-
Sir David Chipperfield collaborates with Tsatsas on a wallet that’s ‘a piece of architecture in miniature’The third chapter in a long-running collaboration between architect Sir David Chipperfield and German leather brand Tsatsas sees the cardholder reimagined. Here, Chipperfield and Esther and Dimitrios Tsatsas tell Wallpaper* more
-
This season, men’s outerwear is defined by bold shapes and seductive texturesThe voluminous silhouettes of the season’s finest men’s outerwear, captured in the Wallpaper* September 2023 Style Issue by Umit Savaci and David St John James
-
Inside the travelling exhibition celebrating 125 years of luggage brand RimowaFrom celebrity suitcases to rare special editions, Rimowa’s ‘Seit 1898’ exhibition catalogues over a century of the German luggage brand, making stops in Tokyo, New York, Shanghai and Cologne
-
Watch this La Jetée-inspired fashion film by Melanie + Ramon, captured on the streets of ParisTaken alongside the Wallpaper* September 2023 cover shoot, this fashion film by Melanie + Ramon draws inspiration from Chris Marker’s experimental 1962 French science-fiction movie La Jetée
-
American designer Willy Chavarria on his lifelong love of DickiesFeatured in the Wallpaper* USA 300, Willy Chavarria is part of America’s new wave of fashion designers. On the launch of his collaboration with Dickies, he talks utilitarian design, authenticity, and buying his first pair of Dickies at Kmart
-
First look at Paul Smith and Mulberry’s colour-soaked bag collaborationBritish stalwarts Paul Smith and Mulberry have united on colourful new bags that riff on the latter’s classic ’Antony‘ messenger style
-
The evolution of RabanneOnce known for its futuristic couture, 1960s-founded fashion house Rabanne is evolving under the creative direction of Julien Dossena, but remains true to its founder’s avant-garde legacy
-
Introducing Wallpaper* September 2023: The Style IssueDiscover the looks of the season, Hedi Slimane’s new Celine store in Paris, Silvia Prada’s saucy take on beauty and more in Wallpaper* September 2023, on sale now
