Westblom Krasse Arkitektkontor

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    ICA Stop supermarket designed as a “culinary dream come true”

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    Swedish studio Westblom Krasse Arkitektkontor and design agency Snask have revamped a supermarket in Täby, adding pastel hues and materials such as terrazzo and wood to “turn shopping into an experience”.

    The design was intended as a facelift for the store, which is part of Sweden’s ICA supermarket chain and had been given many smaller additions over the years without an overall design direction.
    Together, Snask and Westblom Krasse Arkitektkontor redesigned the 2,200-square-metre store outside of Stockholm, refreshing its interior by creating multiple themed stations.
    A pink juice bar welcomes visitors inside Täby’s ICA StopThese include a pink juice and smoothie bar, a “vegan butchery” station, a seafood and champagne bar and a bar for delicacies, designed to give ICA Stop the feel of a market hall.
    “Our main goal was to create a more personal shopping experience,” Snask creative director Freddie Öst told Dezeen.

    “We did this by modernising the brand and giving it a concept as the culinary dream come true.”
    Snask and Westblom Krasse Arkitektkontor used colours that would enhance the produceTo create clean sightlines inside the shop, which also has a restaurant space at the front, Westblom Krasse Arkitektkontor and Snask used rounded shapes throughout the interior.
    “This wasn’t just about keeping the store from turning into a sardine can,” Öst said. “It was about giving everything and everyone room to breathe – and look fabulous doing it – even products that would otherwise be blocking one another.”
    Fruit counters have ribbed sides and perforated metal shelvingFor both practical and aesthetic reasons, the bars and counters were given a ribbed effect that adds textural interest to the store interior.
    “It’s like putting pinstripes on a curve – it adds just the right amount of flair without messing with the flow,” Öst said.
    “[It’s] a classy shout out to those fluted columns from the architectural playbook,” he added. “We made store design not just functional but fashionably sleek, with a wink and a nod to the ancients.”
    Terrazzo was used for the tabletops in the restaurantThe studios used materials not usually associated with supermarkets for the interior, including lacquered wood, stainless steel and terrazzo, which was used for the tabletops in the restaurant section.
    Counters were wrapped in thick medium-density fibreboard (MDF) and fortified with steel rods to protect them against “rogue shopping carts”, while the fruit and vegetable shelves were constructed from perforated lacquered metal.

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    “We made sure to blur the lines between a regular supermarket and the nirvana of a chef, turning shopping into an experience,” Öst said.
    As the store remained open while it was being refurbished, the studios had to plan the change of the interior in different stages.
    Stainless-steel counters “pop like a comic strip”They chose to use pastel colours throughout the stores for the shelving and bars to keep the focus on the food itself.
    “We fine-tuned the entire space against a new backdrop of soothing soft blue allowing for the fresh produce to become the leading actor with its rainbow hues,” Öst said.
    “The stainless steel counters add a pop like a comic strip,” he added. “The market hall slithers like a friendly serpent, presenting an array of cheese, meats and cold cuts, guiding you through the culinary wonderland without disturbing the colours of food and packaging.”
    Snask redesigned the logo and branding for the storeAs well as the refreshed interior, Snask also worked on the branding for ICA Stop.
    “The logo was redrawn and we also added the S symbol, making it a recognizable brand marker,” Öst explained.
    “Per usual, we threw away the old ways of doing things and dialled up both colours, typography, design, architecture and fun.”
    The colourful store is located in Täby outside of StockholmThe unusual interior of the store, which is now open to customers, has divided opinions.
    “Most customers adored the change, while others… not so much. But hey, that’s the result of flipping the supermarket game on its head,” Öst concluded, adding a quote by graphic designer Tibor Kalman: “When you create something no one hates, no one loves it either”.
    Other creative grocery store designs include Wine and Egg in Los Angeles, which was designed to have a “European feel”, and the stripped-back and simple interior of supermarket Consum’s Benicàssim store.
    The photography is by Mikael Lundblad och Jesper Westblom.

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      Westblom Krasse Arkitektkontor adds colour to 1980s Stockholm apartment

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      An all-lilac kitchen and bright geometric storage solutions feature in this colourful Stockholm apartment renovation by local studio Westblom Krasse Arkitektkontor.

      The two-bedroom apartment, which is housed within a 1980s prefabricated concrete building in southern Stockholm, was transformed by the architecture studio for a family with four-year-old twins.
      Westblom Krasse Arkitektkontor renovated the apartment for a family with twinsAs part of the renovation, Westblom Krasse Arkitektkontor created a number of space-saving storage solutions. For example, the original floor plan featured an enclosed storage space in the middle of the apartment.
      The studio converted this into a trio of smaller storage units for the living room, the kitchen and the pantry. This was achieved by decreasing the size of the hallway but maintaining a corridor to the open-plan living room and home office.
      A see-through bookshelf and the studio’s bespoke Elephant sideboard feature in the living space”The original floor plan was robust and quite deep, with a load-bearing wall separating the living room and bedrooms into two halves,” studio co-founder Jesper Westblom told Dezeen.

      “We didn’t want to close off the spaces by making tiny enclosed rooms, but rather make light additions. The aim was to use small adjustments to make the rooms more defined spatially.”
      Red, yellow and blue tones feature throughout the apartmentA palette of hues created from a mix of the three primary colours – red, blue and yellow – features throughout the home, with the colours offset by white-painted flooring.
      Westblom Krasse Arkitektkontor also chose a combination of pine wood and red medium-density fibreboard to create bespoke joinery and furniture.
      An all-lilac kitchen creates a statement accentThe kitchen was finished in a floor-to-ceiling shade of bluey lilac that also characterises a built-in geometric bench next to the dining table and a tall cupboard concealed behind a “secret door”.
      A large bookshelf divider decorated with organically shaped vases creates a partition between the open-plan living room and office area, with a burnt-orange shelving system providing extra storage.
      The office area can also be cordoned off with a curtain to create extra peace and quiet.
      Matching doors provide separate entrances to the twins’ shared bedroomThe architecture studio’s Elephant sideboard – a chunky blue table that owes its name to its sturdiness and colour – was also included in the living space.
      The family’s twins share one bedroom, which can be entered through two tall and narrow doors, adding a playful touch to the apartment.
      Small windows were also added above these doors to increase the natural light in the apartment.

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      Inside the twins’ bedroom is a sleeping zone and a play area, which are separated by a low wall to create a clear delineation between the two spaces.
      “One of the biggest – and most fun – challenges was to make every single space useful and effective and make room for both play and recovery,” reflected Westblom.
      Subtle storage solutions define the apartmentWestblom and Robin Krasse founded their eponymous Stockholm-based studio in January 2021.
      The firm previously completed the interiors for a local hair salon, which takes cues from architect Carlo Scarpa’s geometric designs and the muted colours of 1920s swimming baths.
      The photography is by Jesper Westblom.

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