Tshwane Store by StudioLandt offers a respite from the urban bustle of the City of Tshwane, the administrative capital of South Africa. While this furniture showroom responds to its urban context with the contrasting softness of earthy warmth and greenery, it equally showcases the parallels between nature and design. By reconnecting customers to nature, rest and contemplation can ensue. Here, furniture is encountered as it is intended: as objects that support repose, thought, and human connection.
The brief was to create a retail space that showcases the furniture while remaining faithful to the building’s envelope and retaining the exterior aesthetic that forms part of the larger precinct. This sensitivity to the building’s urban context illustrates the commitment to authenticity that Weylandts, as well as StudioLandt, is known for. While the new design sits comfortably within its urban environment, something unexpected is offered within.
An oasis of design
At the heart of the store lies a lush, overgrown internal atrium beneath a dramatic central skylight that draws daylight deep into the space. What sets this showroom apart is its commitment to biophilic design in a dense urban context. The space transcends the traditional retail experience by immersing visitors in an environment where nature and design co-exist. The result is a calm space, awash in gentle, natural light, that offers a moment of sensory relief to the city dweller. The restorative effect of the greenery allows a break from the city’s visual noise, and the oxygen released by the plants enables visitors to breathe more deeply and enjoy the building’s expansiveness.
Encircling the green core is a gently sloped circulation ramp, which activates the double-volume interior and creates a layered, immersive customer journey. A custom-designed natural leather sofa produced by Weylandts elegantly traces the curve of the atrium, blurring the line between display and experience. The interplay between organic and designed forms reminds the customer that nature informs design, rather than standing apart from it. This connection is reinforced by the natural materials chosen for the space.
Material honesty
‘The design goes beyond displaying furniture; it reflects a deeper connection to nature, craft, and the spirit of the brand. Every material, every texture was chosen to tell that story and invite people to truly experience the space,’ notes StudioLandt. A restrained palette of natural materials brings texture, warmth, and authenticity to every detail. This is seen in the imported lava rock slabs used to create a sculptural stepping-stone path through the atrium garden, which grounds the space. Artisanal craftsmanship is highlighted in the hand-axed timber blocks that provide textural cladding for key elements such as the café counter and point-of-sale areas. In the restrooms, custom-fired clay bricks in earthen tones are paired with mud-textured wall finishes to reinforce the tactile, grounded atmosphere that resonates throughout the store.
Eloise Thompson, the creative director of StudioLandt, adds that, ‘Together, these materials express StudioLandt’s belief in material honesty and meaningful connection to nature, elevating the retail experience beyond the ordinary.’
Reimagining furniture retail
Before StudioLandt’s holistic reimagining of the existing two-storey retail space, it was defined by extensive perimetre glazing across both floors. Their spatial intervention minimised the external glazing and shaped the atrium that now defines the space. The bold inclusion of greenery and daylight reframes how furniture can facilitate pause, reflection, and human encounter. This is a far cry from the conventional shopping environment, usually set in a type of non-space, where rapid encounters are encouraged. Instead, the story-driven Tshwane Store establishes a strong sense of place where visitors are invited to linger, stay for a cup of coffee, and gather.
“The interplay between organic and designed forms reminds the customer that nature informs design, rather than standing apart from it.”
SUPPLIERS:
Feature Wall: Klay Custom Cast Basins: Rossco | Lights: Botanicus | Landscape: Life Green Group | Joinery & Custom Elements: Weylandts Furniture Creations
MEET THE TEAM:
Architect: Boogertman + Partners | Interior Architects: StudioLandt | Photographer: Sarah de Pina
