So we were all very pleased with our work at Corvin in Budapest when the centre opened in October. Then our client said this: ‘…Air is one of the most professional companies that Ségécé Hungary has worked with…”, which made us even more proud of ourselves. Next our scratch and sniff hoardings were featured in a European design blog; cue a round of applause in the studio for designer Louise. Now, Corvin has won an ICSC Silver Award for its Grand Opening last year! Massive congratulations to Ségécé Hungary and all the contractors involved in the run-up to the opening, the hard work has clearly paid off!

Always the traditionalists, Air’s Christmas theme for this year was Legends of Rock. The carnage began at an afternoon of snowy paintball: 6 games later and the oranges had well and truly smashed the whites, we all had bruises and were very much in need of a glass of mulled wine or three. After sufficiently exhausting and injuring ourselves, we retired to a rock and roll venue for a night of fancy dress, dinner, karaoke and general rock and roll behaviour… Good times.

Merry rocking Christmas and a happy new year from all at Air Design!

As regular readers of the Airblog will know, we have recently completed wayfinding, signage and interiors work at Corvin, Ségécé’s newest mall in Budapest. As the scheme opened, the reviewers flooded in to cast their critical eyes over our handiwork and one blog in particular which caught our eye was this:

N.B. It’s in Hungarian!

http://artinterior.blog.hu/2010/11/08/tapifal_a_plazaban

We’re reliably informed (by our Hungarian clients) that it’s extremely complimentary of the interiors, especially the scratch and sniff hoardings in the food court. Using one unnamed online translation service, the writer explains how ‘watching the corner of my eye, how many people venturing forth a little stroking, but unfortunately no one has been caught’. This warmed our hearts at Air, not only for the charming (and somewhat hilarious) translation, but also because it’s great to know that our designs are bringing enjoyment in a place that would otherwise be devoid of any form of creativity!

It always amazes me how a new shopping mall opens at all. 3 days before the place is always in a state of near total chaos. It’s fit out carnage with the retailers pulling their units together at lightning speed and all the other contractors working around each other in a dizzying mêlée. Somehow and against all probability it always happens, with the scheme coming together seemingly at the last minute. And that’s always down to a lot of dedicated people working like they’re possessed.

And so it was with the 27th October launch of Hungary’s newest mall, Ségécé’s Corvin in Budapest. Our responsibility was for the interior design, wayfinding information system and environmental graphics. 5 months after our commission (which is pretty quick in my book) and three days before opening, Ari and Keith were to be found on site making sure our signage solution, which included a fully touchscreen navigation and information system, a 450 seat food court, 27 toilet blocks, information desk, stop and stay and stop and go furniture, exhibitions and hoarding super graphics were all installed as they should be.

By 6pm on the Tuesday it was 99 percent in and the interiors were looking really fabulous; thanks to Ari, project managers Sandor and a now nearly voiceless Gabi blasting around the place like forces of nature kicking butt left, right and centre (as Ari’s blistered feet would testify to!). The touchscreen system was working perfectly thanks to the endeavors of Keith, Pete, Stu who had been burning Budapest’s reserves of midnight oil whilst also making sure the signs were faultless along with the environmental graphics and hoardings. The latter of which we’re particularly proud of, no less than scratch and sniff hoardings in the food court!

And then all of a sudden the mist clears and it’s done. You stop, go and have a shower, and come back for the 1000 head launch party. The adrenaline, however, takes a while to clear the system and when the call went out for the Jager (miester) at about 10pm we knew we were in trouble. The team still found the energy (or was it the Jager) to party into the small hours, not always the best idea when you’ve got to open the mall at 9.00 the next morning…

…but opened it was by some rather bleary eyed, but happy folk, to an appreciative public.

Corvin is absolutely one of the best jobs we’ve designed to date and we suspect now setting the standard for development in Budapest. A huge thanks to all involved!

Air’s residency in Russia is set to continue with news that we’ve been asked to develop a wayfinding solution for Tsvetnoy in Moscow. The department store is a new addition to the city, located in its cultural hub and on the site of the historical Moscow Central Market. Inspired by Palladian geometry and the forms of great mountains, the architects have created a landmark retailing destination where the customer can shop, eat and explore.

Our brief is to develop a system which is informative enough to prevent visitors from getting lost, but not explicit enough so that they arrive at their chosen destination without firstly exploring other concessions on offer. The scheme will cover all floors of the development, from the lower level car parks, up through the main fashion and beauty retailing floors to the upper food market and restaurant at the ‘peak’. This top level also features its very own rooftop terrace and promenade with breathtaking views of the city.

Tsvetnoy is due to open at the end of 2010.

Air’s CEO Alan Robertson has been giving his opinions in Retail Week’s ‘Good shop, bad shop’ article. Sorry Lillywhites…

As inhabitants of this great city we call London, we like to think that we’re living in the country’s – and arguably the world’s – creative hub. When September rolls around though it seems our thoughts are more than justified; London Fashion Week has just finished and now there’s not one, but two design festivals in full swing. The London Design Festival returns for its seventh year, with over 200 events (most of them free) taking place over nine days across the capital. 2010 also sees the launch of the provocatively named Anti Design Festival. Organised in response to an apparent ‘25 years of cultural deep freeze in the UK’, this runs for the same nine days in Shoreditch, with a whole range of events to broaden your creative horizons.

Whilst we at Air Design couldn’t possibly choose between LDF or ADF, the fact that there are two design festivals showcasing innovative work proves how London remains the place to be for artistic minds. All that remains is to go to some of the shows, and with so many located close to our studio, we don’t know where to start!

Both festivals run to Sunday 26th September:

http://www.londondesignfestival.com/

http://www.antidesignfestival.com/

We’re pleased to announce that we’ve recently been appointed by Briz to develop the branding and marketing for Galeria, a 192,000sq/m retail-entertainment complex in St Petersburg. Upon completion, the centre will contain over 250 shops, a hypermarket, 5 department stores, a multi-screen cinema, fitness centre, bowling and entertainment facilities for families.