Modeled on the Human body

By Editorial Staff - 20 April 2026

In the design of Polène’s first flagship store in Germany, Snøhetta has translated the Parisian leather goods brand’s identity into an essential, sensitive architectural language, creating a project where form follows function and everyday use takes on symbolic value. The initial inspiration for the design came from simple human gestures. “The concept began with a simple sketch of a human arm on a flight to Paris”, says Julia Lackner, interior architect at Snøhetta. “Its natural beauty – the angles, the way it moves and interacts with what it carries – inspired the store’s layout”.
The connection between the body and leather accessories therefore became the design driver, the founding principle of the entire boutique.

The design balances rigor and expressiveness: clean lines, fluid curves, and sculptural folds translate Polène’s approach to high quality leather goods into spatial form. The boutique does more than display products – it constructs and offers visitors an immersive experience that highlights the brand’s hallmark craftsmanship.

Polène Flagship Store © Benoit Florençon, courtesy of Snøhetta

Anchored in Paris’s understated elegance yet permeated by Hamburg’s raw authenticity, the architecture forges a new identity: a dynamic synthesis in which elegance and material force coexist in an ongoing dialogue. The store is a fluid sequence of spaces that translate the brand’s identity into a tactile design language organized around human scale and movement. Smooth clay plaster surfaces form sculptural volumes that contrast with exposed metal, wood, and brick. This contrast between finished and unfinished surfaces produces a visual and tactile tension that structures circulation and display.

Peter Girgis, Snøhetta’s project lead, comments, “For us, the design was about harmony – between a place and a brand, between people and space. Out of that dialogue, something new could emerge: a boutique that feels rooted and alive, elegant yet raw, intimate yet open”. The project draws strength from that tension; it avoids image driven gestures and emphasizes spatial relationships and the human dimension.

Materials play a central role in the design. A stone tile floor, referencing Hamburg’s streets, brings the city’s urban fabric into the store and blurs the boundary between public space and private interior. Locally sourced wood, selected for tone and grain, evokes the region’s flora while adding warmth and intimacy. Metal and masonry elements maintain a link to the area’s industrial past.

Polène Flagship Store Linee essenziali, curve fluide e volumi scolpiti definiscono lo spazio del flagship store, accompagnando il visitatore in un percorso che conduce al cuore dell’artigianalità del brand. © Benoit Florençon, courtesy of Snøhetta

At its heart, this project is a conversation among designers, the Polène team, the city, customers, and the products. The geometry of the human body and the way it occupies space guided the placement of furnishings and gathering points. Custom tables and build-out encourage exploration and exchange, turning the boutique into a place of discovery and interaction. The fixturing includes contributions from artist-designer Simon Stanislawski.

The Hamburg flagship store is conceived as an immersive environment where product and architecture merge into a narrative of beauty and craftsmanship. An experimental gallery designed by Polène allows close inspection of materials, reinforcing the relationship among customer, product, and the creative process. The result is a subtle yet strong celebration of craft in all its forms.

Polène Flagship Store | A tribute to craft in all its forms, an experimental exhibition space designed by Polène invites customers to experience the materials firsthand. © Benoit Florençon, courtesy of Snøhetta

Polène Flagship Store | © Benoit Florençon, courtesy of Snøhetta

Polène Flagship Store | The contrast between subtle, smoothed clay plaster surfaces and the more pronounced materiality of exposed metal, wood, and brick creates an engaging and dynamic narrative. © Benoit Florençon, courtesy of Snøhetta

Polène Flagship Store | Custom furnishings encourage interaction and exchange, converting the boutique into an immersive experience and a place of discovery. © Benoit Florençon, courtesy of Snøhetta

Location: Hamburg, Germany
Client: Polène Paris
Completion: 2025
Gross Floor Area: 570 m²
Interior Designer: Snøhetta
Local Architect, MEP: PBR | architekten ingenieure
General Contractor: Lamberti Construction
Furniture and Art Consultant: Simon Stanislawski

Photography: Benoit Florençon, courtesy of Snøhetta

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