Oki Sato, chief designer and founder of Nendo.
Renowned Japanese designer Oki Sato used to feel that working on his designs was like making a small plate of food. But with his recent renovation project with one of Bangkok’s long-time lifestyle shopping malls, Siam Discovery, he feels he’s helping to conjure a full-course menu.
“It’s a totally different game,” said Sato of the facelift project of the shopping centre, with its 40,000m² space, where he has served as chief consultant for building and interior design. “The rules that we studied in the past don’t work here in Siam Discovery.”
Siam Discovery has been closed for renovation since May of last year. Now its gates are set to reopen to the public on Saturday. Sato was the man behind the renovation. He is also the founder of a design company, Nendo. He has offices in both Tokyo and Milan. In 2006, Sato was chosen as one of the “100 Most-Respected Japanese” by Newsweek magazine. He was also named “Designer of the Year” in 2012, receiving the Elle Deco International Design Award.
Some of Nendo’s past works include designing stores for Camper, perfume bottles for Kenzo’s Totem collection and the surface for a Louis Vuitton lamp. Most projects undertaken by Sato are small in scale. The Siam Discovery project marks Sato’s first in Thailand, as well as his biggest to date.
With Sato as the chief consultant for the renovation, Thai company Urban Architect was contracted to handle the architectural and interior design of Siam Discovery. The whopping investment of 4 billion baht aims to transform this major shopping destination with a grand facelift and over 5,000 brands of goods (categorised based on people’s interests rather than by brand).
The new renovation will come with the concept of a lifestyle laboratory entitled “Siam Discovery — The Exploratorium”, to create an experience of exploration for the retail space.
“It’s about chemistry, like a chemical reaction between different cultures and lifestyles,” he said.
Life spoke to the designer about his design ideology and his take on modern consumers’ shopping behaviours.
Spaces for retail
With the prevalence of online shopping, even Sato himself wonders if a retail space is still a necessity.
“[In the end], I noticed it’s the experience. And that’s something you can’t get through the internet.”
Despite the convenience, ordering products at a single click is incomparable to slowly walking through an air-conditioned mall, browsing hundreds of stores, and coming out with tons of shopping bags. It may take hours of going up and down the escalators, but that’s what the shopping experience is largely about.
“If you know what you want, you can buy it on the internet,” said Sato. “But that’s not shopping. That’s not the true value of retail.”
A good retail space, opined Sato, is one that makes people want something even if they have no idea what it is they actually want. And the designer thinks it’s difficult to re-create the same feeling for e-commerce, though that’s where the future is heading.
Sato foresees that the future of retail space will be intertwined with e-commerce. And, in the end, space design and online shopping will have to share a link to heighten the experience for customers.
Seeking small moments
Nendo’s concept of design has always been about giving people the small “!” moment.
These “a-ha” moments — as Sato classifies them — are things that are hidden in everyday life. Something that people don’t really look for. But when they do, they can’t find it. It’s vague, and could be something as trivial as the reflection of light and shadow. But it’s also rather inspirational — a possible idea for future projects.
He believes these small moments are what make each day interesting. And he always wants people to feel them in his work. Whether a big or small project, his approach always revolves around thinking about people’s emotions and their reactions to the design.
Sato’s lips are sealed on what “a-ha” moments patrons can expect from the new Siam Discovery. Still, he hinted that the space will be filled with a small seed of ideas and stories. And with, as he observed, Thais’ tendency to wander around more than people from other countries, retail has to have a different structure here. Walking through the newly renovated shopping mall will really be just like a discovery.
A man of routine
If Steve Jobs’ sartorial signature is his black turtleneck and blue jeans, then Sato’s is his plain white shirt and dark slacks. He owns stacks of the same clothes just so he doesn’t have to think about this decision in the morning.
“I just wear them one by one,” he said.
Sato’s daily routine includes walking his dog, getting his coffee and eating at a noodle store. He never really changes what he orders.
“I do the same thing at the same time every day. That’s the best way to relax my mind, because I’m not thinking at all [about things that distract from work].”
Instead, he spends his brainpower and creativity on his projects. Sato is involved in countless projects that require individual thinking. He’s always adapting and changing his mind. And the routine helps free up his brain’s capacity for work.
Though he prefers to repeat his daily routine, Sato said the same doesn’t apply to his work. He tries not to have a signature style, or even an area of expertise.
“I like to design things that don’t get old too much,” he said.
His approach in design usually involves coming up with small stories, telling people something they’re familiar with. Nothing too special, big or different. To him, good design has to be something that everyone, regardless of age, gender and knowledge, can understand and get excited about. He believes this approach creates a link between people and objects.
“Design becomes something like a glue. It connects new ideas, technology, people and history.”
Nendo’s design for Camper’s stores in Paris, San Francisco, New York, Madrid and Shinjuku.
Siam Discovery’s new look.
Sato-designed surface for a Louis Vuitton lamp.
Perfume bottles for Kenzo’s Totem collection.
This source first appeared on Bangkok Post Lifestyle.