KADEWE
I
n Europe, there are few names that stand out as the most exclusive, historic, and high-quality department stores. Harrods in London, Galeries Lafayette in Paris and Kaufaus des Westens, known as KaDeWe, in Berlin are the most prominent names in that select group.
KaDeWe is, in fact, the second-largest department store in Europe after Harrods. It comprises more than 60,000 sq m (646,999 sq ft) of retail space and attracts up to 50,000 visitors each day. In 2015, it was bought by a Thai department store conglomerate, the Central Group, but its history extends much further, the original store having opened in 1907. “It is the biggest and most famous store in
Germany,” says Frank Wagner FCSI, manager of foodservice design consultancy K’DREI. “It is an old concept – more than 100 years old – and it is now trying to renovate with new concepts and become more modern.” “KaDeWe was known in my parents’
generation as a place where people would go to drink champagne and eat oysters,” he adds. “It is expensive, like Harrods or Galeries Lafayette, and very exclusive. We have been involved with it for more than 30 years, having worked on the old food court, so we know the demands of the project very well.”
Challenge of changing parameters The food court, which spans 8,000 sq m (86,100 sq ft), is known not only for the high quality of food and goods on offer, but also for its variety. The area contains numerous counters offering everything from chocolate to oysters, bakery products to seafood. Managing such a space and designing an environment to suit all these different offerings are major challenges. “It is an old store, and it was bombed in the
war, so in some ways it is a Frankenstein property that has been extensively rebuilt,” says Wagner. “Adapting to an old building can be difficult. For instance, there is only a certain amount of air that can be circulated within the space. Also, the management of big stores like KaDeWe changes all the time, so it is important to have some continuity, and our reputation in the market, our experience
“It is the biggest and most famous store in Germany. It is more than 100 years old – and it is now trying to become more modern… KaDeWe was known in my parents' generation as a place to go to drink champagne and eat oysters”
with the store and the desire of the interior designer for us to be involved was key to handling what is a very complicated design.” Various architects and interior designers were
involved, among them Studio Karhard, which was commissioned to design certain quadrants of the food court on floor six, commonly known as ‘Die Sechste’. Designing the interior is a huge undertaking, but factoring in the foodservice elements – utilities, kitchen equipment, lighting, ventilation – brings unique challenges for each and every counter. “We did complicated things like creating a curved chocolate counter around 12 meters (39ft) long in an open area,” notes Wagner. “The challenge is that chocolate is very sensitive to moisture and temperature, so we had to find a way to carefully control those conditions.” “There was also a 10 meter (33 ft) bakery and
pastry counter, and different stands for oysters, fish and much more,” he adds. “We have already been working on the project for four years, starting with interim counters that could be moved as the design developed. It is a bit like playing a big game of Tetris.”
Seeing the light
With a project that changes shape and evolves so much over time, experience is key. Wagner has been working on bakery and shop spaces since 1990 and understands that a key part of the process is managing expectations and explaining how ideas will or won’t work in the real world.
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Above: Frank Wagner FCSI of K'DREI. For his parent’s generation it was considered a place to drink champagne and eat oysters. Opposite page: he and his team are modernizing the concepts
EAME
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