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The
pharmacy of Dr Malcotti and Dr Sugliano is set on one of the
main streets in Alba's historic centre and has been located
on this site since 1935. Although the building is modern
itself, Roman remains been uncovered in the pharmacy's
basement.
After
having been refurbished, the pharmacy occupies 2 floors of the
building and has a total surface area of 225 sq. m., of
which circa 150 sq. m. is open to the public. The retail area is located on the ground floor, whilst a beauty
salon, self-testing area, dispensary, office and stock room
is situated in the basement.
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Alba (IT)
- the shop windows before refurbishment. |
Our
design for refurbishing the pharmacy was based on the idea
of making this rather gloomy historic building with lots of
small fragmented spaces as bright and spacious as possible.
It was decided that the complementary medicine sector was going
to be the central pivot around which all of the other
product sectors would revolve. An curved wall and
emerald green and ivory
counter with an
Asiago marble top was constructed to act as the
centre piece of the ensemble. Antique treated
cabinets were then fitted behind to create a backdrop. The counter was then decorated with trompe l’oeils
depicting herbs and plant
extracts used in herbal medicine in order to attract the
attention of the client.
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Tills and
sales counters and the complementary therapies area |
In
order to make the most out of the arched ceilings, all
curtain walls were taken away so as to open out the space,
thereby creating a more spacious and luminous environment. Ral1
and Ral2 series furniture that had been coated in green
varnish and fitted with salmon pink tympanums were installed.
We also fitted a Ral1 counter with a Corian worktop (a
waterproof and stain-resistant material without an visible
joints) and an incorporated display screen updating
customers on the pharmacy's special offers or new product
lines as well as a transparent glass wall for displaying new
products. The counter also houses all of the power
sockets and light switches, as well as a hidden PC and
till.
The
cosmetics department was placed in front of the corner
entrance in order welcome customers flooding into the
pharmacy. Past the cosmetics department, you come upon a
pillar clad in untreated local stone on one side, and space-walls
on
the other side. This is the starting point for the retail
floor and an area where customers can get advice (made up of a
small table, grey metallic seats).
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The
natural stone cladding |
Sartoretto Verna's
design directs customers around the various product sectors,
thereby expanding the extent of the retail area. High-tech lighting and a
sensitive use of materials create a pharmacy that is
suffused with light, where the products seem to float in
midair. The space has been designed to increase sales and
have a calming effect upon customers and staff alike.
Furthermore, the shelving and display units are fitted with
back-lit coloured glass tympanum signs featuring the names of the
various product sectors in order to help customers
distinguish one product sector from another.
We
fitted 3 green enamel oval-shaped sales counters linked
together by an aluminium chrome connecting bar which can be
unfastened to allow the counters to be moved around. These 3
independent counters create a sense of intimacy between the
pharmacist and the client. Each one has a revolving circular
shelf in
frosted glass upon which you can place a till, a PC or a
display stand. Behind the sale counters, we added a series of
worktops with drawers for storage and shelves above for
display over-the-counter medicines. More storage units were
located near the goods entrance.
Down in the
basement, the roman vaulted arches were fully restored back
to the full glory. Furthermore, the white walls, glass-brick
walls and exposed brickwork creates a natural and relaxing
atmosphere.
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Basement:
beauty treatment room with a restored roman arch |
In
sum, our design has optimise the use of the space available
and made them far more customer-centred through improving
their functionality despite difficulties created by the
building age. In this case, the historic nature of the
building was turned into an advantage, as it was combined
with modern materials and building techniques to create a
unique atmosphere.
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