Aesop Opens its First Bangkok Store
Skincare icon Aesop’s first stand-alone store in Thailand makes its home in Bangkok’s Thonglor neighbourhood, with interiors by Chiang Mai-based studio Sher Maker
A sense of being cocooned in timber and cool shadows is the first impression on entering Aesop’s first standalone store in Thailand, in the charmingly cool Bangkok neighbourhood of Thonglor.
The brand is known for picking its neighbourhoods well, and in Bangkok the drawcard was Thonglor’s mix of modernity and traditional Thai charm. Galleries, bars and cafes and independent stores exist within a robust local community, and the founders of Chiang Mai-based studio Sher Maker, Thongchai Chansamak and Patcharada Inplang, looked to the vernacular of the surrounding neighbourhood and further out to Thailand’s provinces in conceiving the concept and design.
Following Aesop’s principle of achieving the maximum effect with the minimum materials, the mono-material interiors are defined by reclaimed teak — from the personal collection of the building’s owner or sourced from nearby districts — backgrounded by the textured white plaster common to the area.
‘The wood is an integral part of the design, and we used it in an honest way. All the elements are used in a rational system to function as furniture rather than decoration,’ says Inplang. ‘The sink in the centre of the store also uses Thai granite, the cheap, everyday stone used by Thais. We had a clear intention to import as little as possible and to use local materials and local skilled labour as much as we could.’
As with Aesop stores the world over, there’s a contemporary domestic quality and aesthetic, here realised literally in the Fa-Lhai Room, a secluded timber pavilion inspired by the residential typology of Northern Thailand. Another nod to domestic life is the store’s central four-part sink, each granite basin inspired by a kraba-din, the traditional earthen fire pit that is the centre of communal gatherings in local villages.
Craft and technique are also central to the design, with traditional joinery used to create the timber posts and benches. The handwork of the beams, joint and surfaces are satisfying to look at and even better to touch.
As with every other Aesop endeavour, the Thonglor space manifests a sincere intention to use intelligent design in crafting a tranquil space where customers can experience the brand’s products and vision.
Text by Simone Schultz
Images courtesy of Aesop
