Retail Week Interiors - Asprey opens its global flagship on New Bond St

Luxury goods retailer Asprey officially opened its 20,000 sq ft (1,860 sq m) global flagship on London's New Bond Street last week.

The store, designed by Foster and Partners, took two years to create, and combines the five historic buildings that comprise the retailer's West End premises into a coherent whole.

Foster and Partners partner Giles Robinson said: 'We felt that the spaces inside the store were not commensurate with the grandeur of the shopfront.' In practice, this has meant that a mezzanine floor has been demolished and 'the whole of the ground floor and basement were rebuilt to make this happen'.

There is also an interior courtyard at the centre of the store, created by throwing a steel and glass roof over an area that was previously an exterior. An elliptical staircase has been put into the courtyard, which, according to Robinson, is 'critically important to make a statement in terms of drawing customers up to the first floor.'

He added that where there were substantial elements of the original Georgian and Victorian structures in place, these have been restored and, where necessary, reinstated, using timber and plaster.

Interior decorator David Mlinaric was brought in to collaborate on the colours, decorations and fabrics of the store. Simpson York provided shopfitting services.