Jacquemus Store Selfridges London by AMO

Location: London, United KingdomType: Retail StoreYear: 2022Architect: AMOPhotographer: Benoit Florençon

Jacquemus at Selfridges London by AMO

Jacquemus Store Selfridges London is a permanent shop-in-shop for the French fashion label Jacquemus on the ground floor of Selfridges, the department store on London’s Oxford Street, designed by AMO, the research and design studio of OMA. Opened in July 2022 alongside a sister boutique at Galeries Lafayette in Paris, it was one of the brand’s very first shops: a compact retail store within a store, dedicated to Jacquemus bags and accessories. Its defining idea is disarmingly simple. Almost everything in it, from the floor to the shelves, plinths, tables and chairs, is made from a single material, a hand-applied, clay-based finish known as terracruda.

Stacked terracruda plinths with pale blue Jacquemus bags before stepped curved shelves and a tall arched doorway at Selfridges London

A material-first design inspired by Provence

Jacquemus was founded in 2009 by the designer Simon Porte Jacquemus, and the south of France where he grew up runs through the label’s collections and imagery. AMO took that origin as its starting point, setting out to capture the atmosphere of Provence through the materiality of the space rather than through decoration. The design of the London and Paris boutiques began as an experiment in testing the limits of working with just one material. “Instead of working with form and deciding on the materials afterwards, we chose the materials at the outset and let them guide the shape of the space,” explained OMA partner Ellen van Loon, who led the project. Reversing the usual sequence in this way meant that the qualities of the material, rather than a predetermined layout, shaped the curves, steps and openings of the interior.

Bright pink Jacquemus bags on a curved terracruda ledge above a clay table with a round glass vitrine at Jacquemus Store Selfridges London

Hand-applied terracruda clay

For Paris, the chosen material was soft white cushioning recalling the textiles of Provence; for London it was terracruda, a clay-based material that echoes the earth and landscape of the south of France. At Selfridges it covers the floor and forms the curving shelving, totems, plinths, tables and chairs, so that the whole boutique reads as one continuous surface. Because it was applied by hand, the finish keeps a deliberate irregularity, with gentle shifts of tone and texture across every wall and ledge, giving the space a sense of naturalness and craftsmanship. Against this warm, uniform backdrop, the bags stand out in bright pinks, pale blues, lilac and white, each one given room to be seen on its own.

Two backlit pill-shaped niches stacked with colourful Jacquemus bags in a sweeping clay wall beside an arched passage at Selfridges London

Curving shelves, arches and hidden cabinets

Floor-to-ceiling display shelving curves around the room in tiers, stepping back like terraces, while freestanding plinths and totems of different heights break up the floor. Arched openings lead between zones, a pair of backlit, rounded niches cut into one wall holds rows of smaller bags, and mirrors with soft, irregular outlines lean against the clay or are set into it. Hidden compartments and cabinets are built into the display units to give a sense of discovery as shoppers browse, a link to the trio of surrealist Le Bleu pop-up installations that Jacquemus staged in and around Selfridges and Oxford Street in May 2022. Those installations, created with the Dutch experience design studio Random Studio, were successful enough to lead directly to the permanent boutique.

Curving clay bench with dusty pink cushions and an arched mirror beneath the illuminated Jacquemus sign, a sculpted clay side table in front

A Provençal interior on Duke Street

AMO describes the London store as an abstracted Provençal domestic interior, populated by objects and customers alike. Seating areas are tucked into the curving displays, and a clay table and chairs sit beside the window, where generous glazing brings daylight into the earth-toned room. The boutique is directly visible from the street, its seating carefully framed by the window, with views out to Duke Street and the David Chipperfield-designed entrance added to Selfridges in 2018, making the store more than a place to shop and inviting passers-by to feel at home. OMA lists further Jacquemus spaces by AMO at Harvey Nichols in London, at Dubai Mall and a second at Galeries Lafayette in Paris.

Completion and credits

Completed in 2022, Jacquemus Store Selfridges London was designed by AMO, the research and design studio of OMA, for the client Jacquemus. The project was led by OMA partner Ellen van Loon and associate Giulio Margheri, with a team of Camille Filbien, Valerio Di Festa and Mattia Locci. The London boutique covers 82 square metres, while its Paris counterpart at Galeries Lafayette, which opened at the same time, covers 60 square metres. The photography is by Benoit Florençon.