SKP-S
An experimental retail universe exploring the future of luxury through immersive storytelling, architecture and experience.
Developed by Sybarite in collaboration with SKP, SKP-S represents a radical reimagining of the luxury department store. Conceived as an subversive counterpart to the traditional SKP model, the concept was designed to engage a new generation of consumers through narrative-driven environments, immersive architecture and unexpected encounters.
- Key Info
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- Location
- Beijing, China
- Client
- SKP
- Services
- Architecture, Interior Design, Branding, Wayfinding, Retail & Spatial Identity, Brand & Customer Experience Strategy
- Year
- 2017 - 2024
- Area
- 20,000 m2 - 35,000 m2
- Photography
- Boris Shiu, Noah Sheldon, Nick Kuratnik, Shihao Xiao, Courtesy of Jin Arts,
- Collaborators
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- Façade Engineer
- Arup
- Lighting Engineer
- Speirs Major Lighting Architecture
- Structural Engineer
- Eckersley O'Callaghan
- Water Features
- The Fountain Workshop
- Concept Collaborator
- Gentle Monster
- Robotic Installations
- JIN ARTS
- Testimonials
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As an industry we’ve only just scratched the surface of experiential retail and its important for SKP as a brand to be at the forefront and a leader of newness and pushing the boundaries of possibilities in the retail world”.
Lorenzo Grazzini - Deputy Director, SKP Store Planning and Design - Press
-
- Location
- Beijing, China
- Client
- SKP
- Services
- Architecture, Interior Design, Branding, Wayfinding, Retail & Spatial Identity, Brand & Customer Experience Strategy
- Year
- 2017 - 2024
- Area
- 20,000 m2 - 35,000 m2
- Photography
- Boris Shiu, Noah Sheldon, Nick Kuratnik, Shihao Xiao, Courtesy of Jin Arts,
- Façade Engineer
- Arup
- Lighting Engineer
- Speirs Major Lighting Architecture
- Structural Engineer
- Eckersley O'Callaghan
- Water Features
- The Fountain Workshop
- Concept Collaborator
- Gentle Monster
- Robotic Installations
- JIN ARTS
As an industry we’ve only just scratched the surface of experiential retail and its important for SKP as a brand to be at the forefront and a leader of newness and pushing the boundaries of possibilities in the retail world”.Lorenzo Grazzini - Deputy Director, SKP Store Planning and Design
Reimagining the Department Store
Positioned both physically and conceptually alongside SKP Beijing, SKP-S was conceived as an experimental retail laboratory where luxury brands, artists and technology could coexist within a constantly evolving narrative framework.
Rather than organising retail around traditional categories, SKP-S places “experience per square metre” at the centre of the customer journey. Architecture becomes storytelling, circulation becomes exploration and retail becomes a form of discovery.
Featuring immersive environments, kinetic installations, exclusive brand collections, digital experiences and theatrical spatial sequences, each destination invites customers into a world where the boundaries between retail, entertainment and cultural experience dissolve.
Episode One: Life on Mars — Beijing
Co-created with Gentle Monster, the inaugural SKP-S destination transported visitors to a futuristic Martian landscape. Across four levels, customers journeyed through a highly immersive environment populated by robotic clones, infinite reflections, celestial landscapes and dramatic architectural interventions.
At its centre was the Mars Zone — a surreal world where technology, fashion and imagination converged to establish a new paradigm for experiential luxury retail.
Episode Two: Earth Rebirth — Xi'an
The second chapter shifted focus towards themes of renewal, transformation and future possibility.
Anchored by the 60-metre-long Time Tunnel, the journey unfolded through a series of immersive environments including the Sky Port and The Terra. Here, futuristic pathways, robotic installations and planetary landscapes created an alternative vision of a world being rebuilt and reimagined.
Episode Three: Parallel World — Chengdu
In Chengdu, the narrative moved into a dystopian parallel reality. Defined by a striking black façade, Brutalist forms and immersive digital environments, the project explored the tension between physical and virtual worlds.
At the heart of the experience sat the Supernova — a kinetic installation composed of rotating layers that embodied perpetual movement and discovery. Retail, art and technology combined to create an environment suspended between past, present and future.
Episode Four: Paradox Planet — Wuhan
The fourth chapter explored a world defined by contradiction. Set within a surreal arctic landscape, the project examined themes of adaptation, coexistence and transformation.
Polar bears drifted through frozen environments, industrialised penguin colonies occupied mechanised landscapes and visitors navigated a sequence of spaces that challenged assumptions about nature, technology and progress. The result was an environment where opposing forces existed simultaneously, creating a powerful reflection on the future of our planet.
CONCLUSION
SKP-S is not a singular destination but an evolving platform for experimentation. Through successive episodes, the concept continues to explore new relationships between architecture, technology, culture and luxury retail.
From Mars and rebirth to parallel worlds and paradoxical futures, each chapter expands the boundaries of what a department store can be — demonstrating how immersive storytelling and experiential design can transform retail into a journey of continuous discovery.
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