A'Candilicious' fantasy trip ...

This 1800 sq. mt. space of wonders is in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. A candy shop by nature, Candylawa has a delicious story to tell. It is the world's largest integrated candy store and spreads its fun offerings across two levels. Along with selling candy, which in itself is a drool-inducing feature, the store hosts interactive activities and specialized spaces to enhance appeal. The store has been designed to create a fantasyland, quite literally! The design creativity goes beyond the displays and are reflected in the permanent interiors and their elements.


An all-white store entrance with a cloud shaped entry way is inspired from the circular logo itself. The white frontage is kept mute for the interior colours to communicate and entice the customer drawing him or her into the store. Candylawa mascots welcome you into the store, adding the touch of hospitality . Upon entry, the customer is immediately exposed to a rainbow of colours, beautifully communicated with the merchandise and the interiors. The ambience targets the customers' taste buds by captivating their visual senses. There are no hard lines in the store and the design is a seamless flow of rainbow colours in softer forms. Considering the scale of the space, structural elements are bound to obstruct the flow. But the columns have been converted into merchandise display stations. A twisted lollipop for decor, for example, takes attention away from the fact that there is a column underneath it! With the store size as an advantage, different sections have been created. Also, with ease of movement offered in the store, the customer travels from one Lawa land to another, only to be seduced by the wonders the architecture creates for a'candilicious' environment. All sections burst with different colours and the palette is carefully chosen so as to have a correct balance between the loud and the subtle. All display stations are in white, so they do not clash with the colours surrounding them. Lollilawa for instance, has twisted lollilop ceilings, while the Wrapalawa has fibre glass ribbon reels dangling from the ceiling. One of the walls displays a pipe network arrangement and that too is filled with candy! Wonka is one of the leaders in the candy business and Candylawa has a dedicated section for it. The Wonka Walk takes you through an experience of mushroom gondolas and a large scale Wonka hat; all leading upto the Wonda Candy Wall, which seems to be extending into infinity. Redesign Group, the design brain for the project, seems to have taken a slice of our collective imagination of a wonderland and given it a physical form.

Engaging the customer was an important point of the store brief and in all the sections, the customers can actually watch their candy, milkshake or marshmallows being made. An art lounge is all about creating one's own artwork. The service section where the cupcakes are iced is enclosed in glass for the customers to see the mouth watering creations being finished. Customized candies, marshmallows and milkshakes are on the menu. Also, when the kids frolic in their dream destination, parents can relax over a cup of coffee at the cafe in-built in the store. The store does not have a target consumer, they have something for everyone. It clearly calls out'Come one, come all!' The sales counters on both the floors are at the rear so that they do not intrude into the flow of the experience. The idea is that  people do not come to this store with an agenda at hand. It is all about the journey and the experience from start to finish and thereby the location of the sales counter is justified.

As for the lighting, it does differ based on the zones created in the store. Care was taken to brighten up the space wherever required and dim the lights at places like the Wonka walk for an enchanted experience. Complementing the theme, the fixtures were also designed like-wise. Bespoke light fixtures were used across the store based on the requirements of the zones. On the first floor, the high ceilings of the open void suspend circular light fittings in different sizes and colours.

Candylawa is not a mere store, it is more of a story told through the flow of the space. This story represents the family of Candylawa- its four mascots Mello, Sukar, Coco and Sprinkle. These mascots are the identity of the store and dwell on little nothings in the store as well. They stand as representatives of the brand and set it apart. At places in the store, they can be seen hanging from the ceiling, on skateboards and on the merchandise as well, treating the store as if it is their own home.

Summing up the whole design objective for the store, Ronan McCool, Design Head, Redesign Group India, says, "Our aim was to provide the most coherent design for branding in the form of logos, shop front and supplementary graphics which stood out from competing signage, food and retail offerings and similar service provider competitors. Our graphic designer worked closely with the interior design team to jointly project the brand into the market with a methodical design approach. We created a story and developed the reason why the brand is a stand-out against its competitors.”.