la station cafe

Being able to grab a cup of high-quality coffee and freshly-made sandwich or pastry on your way to work from the local metro station has been the norm at many metropolitan cities around the globe.  When our client approaches us to design their first La Station coffee chain store in Hong Kong, they wanted to bring along this experience to the local whilst introducing different cities’ metro style into their stores.

As our client were all France nationals their first flagship store, located on Queen’s Road East of Wanchai, is intentionally reminiscent of the Paris metro station where one can enjoy a genuine European coffee experience in the comfort of an Asian city.

As guests first walk through the door of the 300sqft La Station, they will be immediately greeted by a white subway-tiled half-vault lined with brass wall lamps, offering an unapologetic nod to the Metro stations back home in France which is in stark contrast of a gold-coloured stainless steel counter and a menu board has been fashioned from an industrial-style split-flap screen. A grey-tinted mirror with an open-front awning provides a sense of spaciousness and welcome, inviting passerby to pop in to say hi.

As the design team worked to deliver a venue that closely resembled a humble train station, the premise presented a difficult challenge in the form of a decidedly unruly column that took up substantial floor space. We decided to transform this column into a stylish centerpiece which resembles a red mosaic wall of the nearby Central MTR station, juxtaposes against the surrounding European elements. Furthermore the pièce de résistance, a custom made wall lighting fixture, has been shaped to resemble the Hong Kong MTR map as a glittering homage to Hong Kong.

Completed in 2016.