RED RABBIT

Sydney’s dining institution, Claude's, was closed in early September, the latest victim of Sydney’s push towards mid-market restaurants. Claude's reopened in late September as the pan-asian Red Rabbit. The Red Rabbit has turned the fine dining institution into a fun, vibrant, colourful take on modern Asian.

aplin creative was proudly appointed to lead the transition.

The design brief was to simply turn the existing restaurant on its head, and add the Flavour, Colour, Creativity and Culture that it was lacking. The inspiration was found in the flavors and colours of Asian cuisine. Modern Asian art and culture were also used to inspire an exciting environment.

RED RABBIT - design exploration and direction — RED RABBIT - design exploration and direction

The colour pallet was bold, but clean and controlled. The selection of colours, detailing and finishes were directly from Asian influences. The textures were references to the urban environment of modern Asian cities. Graphics and branding were used to introduce the creative culture that the restaurant atmosphere and cuisine reflects. The furniture and fixtures were all selected with consideration to the interior and the different uses of the bar and dining levels.

The FACADE was painted in a bold red paint with detailing in black and polished bronze. Strong branding helps the facade stand out in its prominent location on Oxford Street.

The LEVEL 1 interior is the bar and casual dining. This space is vibrant and fun. The bar is the main feature where clients interact, dine and enjoy a glass of wine. The complex space was cleaned up and simplified. We added a subtle texture to the main wall and additional lighting to play with shadowing. Behind the bar we used graphics, custom wall coverings and retained the existing mirrors to create a strong and fun feature. The custom wall covering which you follow up the stairs, makes you feel as if you are exploring a darker, different area of the restaurant, then when you emerge, you have arrived on LEVEL 2.

LEVEL 2 is the main dining area. This area was opened up, the soft furnishings were replaced with new solid timber furniture in a dark wenge stain. The space has been simplified and cleaned up and now the focus turns to the bold features that add the fun and culture to the Red Rabbit. Again the use of strong branding helps reinforce the underlying themes within the space.

budget: $$

design time: 3 weeks

build time: 2 weeks

POSH COMFORT

The Posh Comfort retail store is the new home of San Miguel Shoes in New Zealand. The store opened in early October and is the first in New Zealand to stock the popular product.

Jane Hayman, the owner of Posh Comfort, has years of experience in retail. She has owned a number of retail stores in South Africa and New Zealand. This is her next adventure as she brings a truly great product to the streets of New Zealand. Jane has selected a beautiful range of complementary footwear, handbags and accessories to bring together an exceptional product collection.

The design brief for the store was to focus on the product. The key consideration was the changing trends and seasons. The range is vibrant and strong in summer seasons and more conservative for the cooler seasons. We made a conscious decision to keep the base build of the store clean and the colour pallet simple, as the product has so much life. We used focused textures and colours to bring life to the space but only in the areas without product.

With consideration to the vibrant product and seasonal fashion changes, we designed the store to work as a blank canvas for the product. In footwear and accessory stores, product is easily confused with a complicated fit out.

The application of colour in this space is through selected surface treatments and soft furnishings. Another benefit to this is the flexibility within the space. This is because these treatments are easy to change to keep the store on-trend and fresh. The wall coverings behind the POS and the floor rugs are examples of areas that can be replaced easily when required.

With a limited existing store room and a lot of stock, the first step was to increase the storage capacity. We did this by bringing stock into the store and separating it with a feature wall. This wall is located behind the POS which gave us a great opportunity to bring in some strong colour on a large scale. This colour is repeated and complemented in the soft furnishings. The shelving and fixtures are versatile and were selected with consideration to growth of the accessories range and the introduction of an apparel range.

budget: $

design time: 3 WEEKS

build time: 1 WEEK

aplin creative - look book

aplin creative is proud to announce the release of our first ever lookbook. The lookbook previews our upcoming range of product, lighting, textiles and furniture.

Our new lighting and textiles arrive soon, so look out for them in our online store.

For inquires and a digital copy of the look book please email info@aplincreative.com

aplin creative - website launch

After years of hard work, aplin creative officially launched its website on the 24th of September, with a great response. We had 572 hits on our first day and we would like to thank everyone involved for their help and support to get the site up and running.