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AIM Architecture

@aimarchitecture

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AUTHENTIC IMMERSIVE MATTERS
Antwerp | Shanghai | Hong Kong | Chicago
FRAME Designer of the Year
AD100 China
Founder @12antwerp

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AT THE JURY TABLE

AIM co-founder Wendy Saunders joined artist and designer @jaimehayon, Smita Thomas (founder of @multitudeofsins), Benni Allan (founder of @ebbaarchitects) and Julien Sebban (founder of @uchronia_world) in London as part of the @dezeenawards_ 2026 Master Jury.

One day of looking, debating, challenging and exchanging ideas around the work shaping design today.

Different voices. Different perspectives. Great conversations.

Thank you @dezeen for having Wendy at the table!

#AIMArchitecture #DezeenAwards #DezeenAwards2026 #DezeenAwardsJudges taken in London by @aimarchitecture

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a month ago

At the top of the journey, the atmosphere shifts once more.

The Man floor is imagined as a contemporary Shanghai apartment, a warmer, more intimate environment where the boundaries between retail, hospitality and domestic life begin to blur. Furniture and objects are arranged less as conventional retail displays and more as an inhabited interior. Against the raw concrete shell, timber, textiles and tactile materials introduce a sense of comfort and familiarity, inviting visitors to slow down, browse and spend time.

From the public brick landscape at street level to the apartment above, @zara Huaihai Road unfolds as a sequence of distinct experiences, each with its own character, yet connected through one continuous architectural journey.

At AIM, we don’t simply design retail stores. We create places where commerce, culture and community come together, spaces people want to visit not only for what they buy, but for what they experience.

Client: @zara
Design: @aimarchitecture
Photography: @sethpowersphoto

#AIMArchitecture #ZARA #Shanghai #RetailDesign taken in Shanghai,china by @aimarchitecture

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2 months ago

Moving through ZARA Huaihai Road, each floor reveals a distinct spatial identity shaped around the collections it hosts.

The fitting room becomes a world of its own. Mirrors dissolve the boundaries of the space, while light, reflection and music create an immersive, almost surreal atmosphere. What is usually one of retail’s most functional moments becomes one of its most unexpected, turning the simple act of trying on clothes into an experience.

In the Man section, the atmosphere shifts again. Conceived as a contemporary atelier, the space celebrates making and craftsmanship. Timber structures, tactile materials and carefully integrated displays bring warmth to the existing concrete shell, creating an environment that feels precise yet informal.

From immersive to crafted, each space offers a different experience within one continuous architectural journey.

Client: @zara
Design: @aimarchitecture
Photography: @sethpowersphoto

#AIMArchitecture #ZARA #RetailDesign by @aimarchitecture

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2 months ago

For @zara’s fashion-forward TRF collection, the architecture takes on a more industrial character.

Inspired by shipping and storage environments, the first floor is conceived as a contemporary warehouse: raw, direct and deliberately utilitarian. Exposed concrete, metal structures and functional display systems form a flexible framework, while the existing architecture remains visible throughout.

The language is intentionally stripped back, allowing the energy of the collection, and the people moving through it, to constantly reshape the space.

A warehouse reinterpreted for a new generation of retail.

Client: @zara
Design: @aimarchitecture
Photography: @sethpowersphoto @zara

#AIMArchitecture #ZARA #RetailDesign by @aimarchitecture

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2 months ago

At the heart of @zara Huaihai Road, the existing staircase becomes a sculptural landmark, connecting the different levels and turning circulation into part of the spatial experience.

The journey leads to the first floor, home to women’s shoes and bags alongside ZARA’s fashion-forward TRF collection. Here, the atmosphere shifts. Conceived as a contemporary warehouse, the space takes cues from industrial and shipping environments, with raw materials, exposed structures and utilitarian display systems creating a deliberately functional backdrop for the collections.

Rather than repeating a single identity throughout the building, each floor develops its own character. The staircase becomes the constant between them, a vertical promenade connecting different products, atmospheres and experiences.

One building, multiple worlds.

Client: @zara
Design: @aimarchitecture
Photography: @sethpowersphoto

#AIMArchitecture #ZARA #RetailDesign by @aimarchitecture

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2 months ago

From the street, the brick landscape continues inside, blurring the threshold between public space and retail. Outdoors, it becomes a place to sit and gather; indoors, the same structure transforms into seating and display, drawing the life of Huaihai Road into the store.

Beyond it, the design is rooted in a dialogue between permanence and change. The existing concrete shell is preserved and celebrated, while lightweight insertions; timber structures, off-white linen, furniture and display systems, sit lightly within it.

Rather than concealing the building, these elements allow its original structure, proportions and long, narrow footprint to remain present. Movement becomes a continuous architectural promenade, with spaces unfolding gradually and perspectives shifting between the interior and the city.

A permanent shell, designed to accommodate constant change.

Client: @zara
Design: @aimarchitecture
Photography: @sethpowersphoto

#AIMArchitecture #ZARA #RetailDesign #PublicSpace by @aimarchitecture

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2 months ago

For our fourth collaboration with @zara, we continue a shared ambition to rethink the role of physical retail, creating a place where commerce, culture and community converge.

On Huaihai Road, one of Shanghai’s most vibrant commercial streets, the building opens itself to the city. A monumental brick staircase extends from the façade onto the street, forming an amphitheatre-like landscape for sitting, gathering, meeting or simply watching the city go by.

Part public space, part retail environment, it blurs the boundary between inside and outside, giving space back to the street and inviting people in, whether they come to shop or not.

A store, but also a place for the city.

Client: @zara
Design: @aimarchitecture
Photography: @sethpowersphoto

#AIMArchitecture #ZARA #RetailDesign #PublicSpace taken in Shanghai,china by @aimarchitecture

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2 months ago

What if retail borrowed more from places where people naturally want to be?

The first floor of HARMAY Chengdu MixC reimagines the everyday spaces of school life, not as literal references, but as familiar social settings that encourage curiosity, interaction, and discovery. A library becomes a place to browse. A canteen becomes a place to gather. A terrace becomes a contemporary playground where community takes shape.

By translating these collective memories into a contemporary retail environment, the project shifts the focus from transaction to experience. Shopping becomes only one part of a broader journey shaped by exploration, conversation, and connection.

We believe retail can become a form of cultural infrastructure: a place where culture, commerce, and community coexist.

HARMAY Chengdu MixC
Chengdu, China

Client: @harmayofficial
Design: @aimarchitecture
Photography: @sethpowersphoto

#AIMArchitecture #HARMAY #RetailDesign #Architecture #SpatialExperience by @aimarchitecture

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3 months ago

What if circulation became the experience?

At the heart of HARMAY Chengdu MixC, a bold staircase gives movement a central role in the project. Rather than simply connecting two floors, it invites visitors to slow down, shift perspectives, and experience the store as a sequence of unfolding moments.

Inspired by the spatial rituals of school, where learning happens as much between classrooms as inside them, the staircase becomes more than circulation. It is a place to meet, observe, pause, and take part in the life of the store.

For us, architecture is not just about shaping spaces, but about choreographing movement. Because the way we move through a place ultimately shapes the way we experience it.

HARMAY Chengdu MixC
Chengdu, China

Client: @harmayofficial
Design: @aimarchitecture
Photography: @sethpowersphoto

#AIMArchitecture #HARMAY #RetailDesign #Architecture #CustomerExperience by @aimarchitecture

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3 months ago

What if a retail facade behaved more like a piece of city?

For HARMAY Chengdu MixC, the architecture doesn’t stop at the storefront. A series of stepped bleachers extends into the public realm, transforming the entrance into a place for gathering, pausing, and everyday encounters. Inspired by the collective memory of school sports fields, the project blurs the boundary between commerce and public life.

We believe retail can contribute to cities in the same way streets, squares, and parks do: by creating opportunities for people to meet, observe, and participate.

Because architecture shouldn’t simply contain experiences. It should create them.

HARMAY Chengdu MixC - Chengdu, China

Client: @harmayofficial
Design: @aimarchitecture
Photography: @sethpowersphoto

#AIMArchitecture #HARMAY #Chengdu #RetailDesign #PublicSpace by @aimarchitecture

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3 months ago

THE HALL

A collective exhibition curated by AIM (@aimarchitecture) and Yoko Choy (@missyoko) at 12Antwerp (@12antwerp), presented during Antwerp Design Week (@antwerpdesignweek) and Antwerp Fashion Festival (@antwerp.fashionfestival).

Exhibition: May 30 – June 7, 2026 | Daily, 10:00-18:00

📍12Antwerp
Kattendijkdok-Oostkaai 12, Antwerp

Participants:
A+N Studio (NL) / Aboli Bibelot (BE) / Aldo Cibic (IT) / Aoiro (JP) / Athos Burez (BE) / Bart van Nuys (BE) / Big-Game (CH) / Cédric Etienne (BE) / Cédric Jacquemyn (BE) / Christophe Coppens (BE) / Duyi Han (CN) / Emma Terweduwe (BE) / Esther Van Schuylenbergh (BE) / Filip Arickx - Nightfall (BE) / Galerie Alain Hens (BE) / Haus Of Hu (CN) / Ivania Carpio (NL/BE) / Janne Claes (BE) / Jin Kuramoto (JP) / Joffrey Conings - Hurse (BE) / Joongho Choi (KR) / Koen Van Guijze (BE) / Kuo Duo (KR) / Lisa Konno (NL) / Loïc Bernier (BE) / Magda Studio (BE) / Marie Bernadette Woehrl (BE) / Mario Tsai (CN) / Niceworkshop (KR) / Sae Honda (JP) / Secret of Manna (USA) / Shin Shin (KR) / STOF (BE) / Studio DO (BE) / Studio Emiel Brusselmans (BE) / Sun Yao (CN) / Thibeau Scarcériaux (BE) / Tom Volkaert (BE) / Unveiled Collective (BE) / Verstrepen Studio (BE) / We+ (JP) / Wim Pues (BE) / Yui Takada (JP)

Photography: @wedocumentart taken in Antwerp, Belgium by @aimarchitecture

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4 months ago

THE HALL

A collective exhibition curated by AIM (@aimarchitecture) and Yoko Choy (@missyoko) at 12Antwerp (@12antwerp), AIM’s European office and cultural platform, presented during Antwerp Design Week (@antwerpdesignweek) and Antwerp Fashion Festival (@antwerp.fashionfestival).

Exhibition: May 30 – June 7, 2026 | Daily, 10:00-18:00

📍12Antwerp
Kattendijkdok-Oostkaai 12, Antwerp

Participants:
A+N Studio (NL) / Aboli Bibelot (BE) / Aldo Cibic (IT) / Aoiro (JP) / Athos Burez (BE) / Bart van Nuys (BE) / Big-Game (CH) / Cédric Etienne (BE) / Cédric Jacquemyn (BE) / Christophe Coppens (BE) / Duyi Han (CN) / Emma Terweduwe (BE) / Esther Van Schuylenbergh (BE) / Filip Arickx - Nightfall (BE) / Galerie Alain Hens (BE) / Haus Of Hu (CN) / Ivania Carpio (NL/BE) / Janne Claes (BE) / Jin Kuramoto (JP) / Joffrey Conings - Hurse (BE) / Joongho Choi (KR) / Koen Van Guijze (BE) / Kuo Duo (KR) / Lisa Konno (NL) / Loïc Bernier (BE) / Magda Studio (BE) / Marie Bernadette Woehrl (BE) / Mario Tsai (CN) / Niceworkshop (KR) / Sae Honda (JP) / Secret of Manna (USA) / Shin Shin (KR) / STOF (BE) / Studio DO (BE) / Studio Emiel Brusselmans (BE) / Sun Yao (CN) / Thibeau Scarcériaux (BE) / Tom Volkaert (BE) / Unveiled Collective (BE) / Verstrepen Studio (BE) / We+ (JP) / Wim Pues (BE) / Yui Takada (JP)

Photography: @wedocumentart taken in Antwerp, Belgium by @aimarchitecture

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4 months ago