Nicola Roberts, Tania Fares, Carmen Busquets, Wendy Yu, Coco Konig and many more joined British sustainable luxury fashion accessory brand BOTTLETOP to celebrate the opening of its flagship store, an exciting new ecological design partnership with KRAUSE ARCHITECTS and AI BUILD, a global leader in large-scale 3D printing technology.
The ground breaking BOTTLETOP flagship store fit at 84 Regent Street re-imagines the future of ecologically responsible construction through zero waste design. The most advanced KUKA robots printed the store interior using REFLOW filament, which is made entirely from plastic waste. The raw material undergoes a process of washing, shredding and extrusion to transform into up-cycled filament.
The 3D printed store concept, inspired by Paolo Zilli, is a world-first in retail and contributes to a broader positive ecosystem, in line with the values upon which the BOTTLETOP brand and collection are based; those of sustainable luxury, ethical design, technical innovation and cross-cultural collaboration.
For a limited time only, the store allows customers to interact with KUKA’s latest iiwa robot and take home a ‘piece of the store’ and also have personalised BOTTLETOP bag charms printed using the REFLOW up-cycled plastic filament.
Speaking about the new store design, BOTTLETOP Co-Founder Oliver Wayman said: “For the first time, visitors to our store will be able to witness the sustainable use of this technology first hand while shopping the BOTTLETOP collection and learning about the mission of the brand. This is so exciting for us as our customers can watch the transformation of the store. Overhead hangs our trademark metal canopy, with thousands of cans embedded into a 3D printed lattice structure suspended from the ceiling, which is a play on the concept of negative space, inspired by the British contemporary artist Rachel Whiteread.”
The design vision for the space is completed by flooring made from up-cycled rubber tyres, a bespoke in-store scent from renowned perfumer Timothy Han, and a series of bespoke playlists from record producer Mario C, the visionary behind Beastie Boys and Bjork recordings, who produced the BOTTLETOP BAND album featuring Carl Barat (Libertines), Matt Helders (Arctic Monkeys) and Gruff Rhys.
Wayman continued: “The store offers an inspiring immersive experience that blends future-facing ecological conscience with time-honoured craftwork, through which our customers can truly learn about BOTTLETOP’s award winning collection and our vision for the future.”
The design creates the perfect backdrop for the BOTTLETOP collection, which features intricate hand craftsmanship in signature materials including up-cycled metal and Amazon zero deforestation leather. New styles for AW17 in seasonal colours petrol and scarlet include the Emma Clutch, Micro Morela Tote and Luciana Maxi Cross Body alongside fair-mined gold and up-cycled silver BOTTLETOP pendants.
Guests enjoyed Taittinger Champagne and music by DJ Scarlett Lapidus at the store launch.
BOTTLETOP
BOTTLETOP launched in 2002 through a design collaboration with Mulberry. At the heart of the campaign was the first luxury bag design made entirely from up-cycled materials to be launched globally at retail; a best selling handbag made from bottle tops in Kenya, lined with Mulberry leather off-cuts
in the UK.
BOTTLETOP went on to establish an atelier in Salvador, Brazil, where it has developed its collection of bags and accessories featuring custom production techniques and its sustainably sourced signature materials; up-cycled metal and certified zero deforestation leather from the Amazon. BOTTLETOP also produces an ‘art on canvas’ collection in Kenya; providing the basis for hand screen printed design collaborations with leading contemporary artists including Idris Khan and Wangechi Mutu on East African farmed cotton canvas.
BOTTLETOP and Narciso Rodriguez were awarded the Green Carpet Challenge (GCC) brandmark by Eco Age in 2014 for their design collaboration. BOTTLETOP collaborated with DKNY in 2015 and partnered with BAFTA and the Rio Olympics in 2016 designing costumes for the Opening Ceremony.
The sale of BOTTLETOP designs fund the operation of the BOTTLETOP FOUNDATION, which supports health education projects in Ethiopia, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Brazil and the UK.
KRAUSE ARCHITECTS
KRAUSE ARCHITECTS is a London based studio for urban design, architecture, interior and product design. The studio has an international reach with projects in the UK, Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia. We look to be involved in delivering demanding projects of a multitude of scales and contexts as well as providing consulting services and research in Architecture and Urban Design.
KRAUSE ARCHITECTS current projects range in size from a 260,000m2 master plan, to numerous high-end residential towers, and villas – to the scale of luxury apartments and interiors. The studio’s philosophy, is the constant pursuit to improve the quality of our built environment through an energetic, sustainable and optimistic approach to design. Passion and innovation combined with disciplined technical expertise drives all of our work from product design and interiors to architecture and urban design. With an experience of over 10 years in working with prestigious firms including Foster + Partners and UN Studio, Andreas Krause and his team have significant experience in delivering projects ranging in scale from £1 million to £300 million infrastructure, commercial, cultural, educational and residential developments.
All our projects develop out of a rational appraisal of the client’s brief and site with the focus to bring out its strength in the design proposal. This is why we approach every project with a fresh pair of eyes to create a unique and one of a kind solution. Our designs are tailored to optimise views, day light, and programmatic or functional connections, with the aim to provide spaces that are stunning yet flexible to accommodate future change. We work hard for our projects to be sustainable – financially, socially and environmentally.
In the design process we employ rigor to test out ideas and constraints in order to develop a proposal that is consistent from the first idea to the final construction detail. This philosophy runs through all our work from large scale master plans and architecture to the scale of interiors. We have a wide spectrum of experience in residential projects, which, coupled with our passion for good design, provides our clients with a competent team that can deliver signature projects. The studio’s philosophy is the constant pursuit to improve the quality of our built environment through an energetic, sustainable and optimistic approach to design. Passion and innovation combined with disciplined technical expertise drives all of our work from product design and interiors to architecture and urban design.
AI BUILD
Ai Build is a London based company developing Artificial Intelligence to make Manufacturing easy, smart and affordable. Their innovative large scale robotic 3D printing technology allows the production of complex designs without human labour and material waste. (www.ai-build.com)
REFLOW
Reflow creates sustainable materials for 3D printing with a strong social purpose. We transform local waste streams into premium 3D materials that match the needs of creators everywhere. When you print with Reflow, you support a global community of makers, recyclers and waste collectors while preventing the production of harmful plastic pollution. Together we can ensure that the next industrial revolution is sustainable, fair and inclusive.
KUKA
Businesses are transforming at varying levels as they embrace technology as a means to diversify operations. Technological developments within automation are underpinning innovation across a number of markets as manufacturers look to improve their operations.
Such trends are driving business owners to adopt a different approach to manufacturing processes. The flexibility afforded by automation enables businesses to meet a variety of unique production requirements whilst maximizing the productivity and efficiency of their existing technologies.
KUKA possess a wealth of knowledge and experience amassed over forty years in the field of automated robotics, with an established portfolio of hardware and software that can be applied within any industry. Whatever the reason for adopting automation, whether it be increasing product throughput to meeting customer demand or implementing operational efficiencies as a means to saving costs, KUKA have the solution that can support your business strategy, allowing you to meet stringent KPI’s and benchmark your operations against those of your competitors.
PAOLO ZILLI
Paolo Zilli is a senior associate at Zaha Hadid. He previously worked on the Salerno Ferry Terminal and has been involved in the Napoli High Speed Train Station and MAXXI in Rome (Stirling prize winner 2010).