Genesis Gangnam Store in Seoul by OMA

Genesis Gangnam, OMA / AMO’s new dealership for the Hyundai Motor Company’s flagship car brand Genesis, has opened to the public in Seoul’s Gangnam business district. This dealership presents the new global prototype for Genesis stores worldwide.

Photograph by June Young Lim, Courtesy of Hyundai

Architect: OMA
Client: Hyundai Motor Company
Location: Seoul, South Korea
Site: 1410 m2
Partner-in-Charge: Chris van Duijn
AMO Director: Samir Bantal
Project Architect: Shinji Takagi
Team: Alan Song, Alessandro Bonfiglio, Fernando Ocana, Silvia Sandor, Vincent Kersten
Clients design team: HMC Creative Works
Local Architect: Innocean Worldwide
Local Contractor: Janghak Construction
Lighting Consultant: Mavericks
Sound Consultant: Music infinity, Geniune Consulting

Photograph by June Young Lim, Courtesy of Hyundai

From the architect: Car shops, formerly the prime sales venue for cars, are no longer the exclusive setting in which cars are branded and presented to customers. Multichannel points of sales enable customers to choose between brands and models before entering the car shop; as a result, 90% of the customers who visit a car store have already chosen a model in advance. Under the pressure of the increased fragmentation of sales and in response to changing consumer habits, the automotive retail store has increasingly turned into a space for marketing and visual branding. This is reflected in the design of the retail space: the ubiquitous vitrine typology has created a mish-mash of brands and product.

Photograph by June Young Lim, Courtesy of Hyundai

Jan Peter Balkenende, former prime minister of the Netherlands, attended the opening and inaugurated the space: “I love Korea, I love cars, and I love OMA.”

Chris van Duijn, partner and director of OMA / AMO Asia: “We created an environment that tells more about the car and the Genesis brand than any logo, poster or LED display would be able to. The space is dominated by the total absence of any traditional marketing tool: no clutter, no distraction. Genesis Gangnam is designed around the car and provides a context for a multiplicity of associations – or none at all, allowing each customer their own human-car experience.”

Photograph by Shinji Takagi, Courtesy of OMA

Designing a store for luxury automotive brand Genesis in Seoul, Korea, led AMO to question the relevance of the automotive retail space as sales environment, and to explore its further potentials. The Genesis Space Identity concept developed by AMO revisits the conventional norm of dealership in the automotive industry. More than an overt sales and display environment, AMO created a store design in which there is a subtler unpacking of Genesis’ message. Following AMO’s research into the interaction between architecture and branding, Genesis Gangnam Store treats car display as curation, breaking away with the commonplace practice of showing as many models as possible. To emphasize the design and craftsmanship of the car, the models on display are placed against a neutral backdrop of grey concrete and lit from above by a bright ceiling.

Photograph by Shinji Takagi, Courtesy of OMA

Samir Bantal, AMO director and project leader: “Both the car and showroom embody modernity, but they contrast in character: this timeless space of the dealership offers a platform for flexibility – ready for continually changing expressions of the Genesis brand, always state of the art. As a car enthusiast myself, it was a particular pleasure to lead the work on a new concept for automotive retail which is more in line with the way people buy cars now. After 10 years since our last project in Korea, we are honored to return and work for the leading company of a crucial national industry.”

Photograph by Silvia Sandor, Courtesy of OMA

Typically, the design of an automotive retail space includes large window shops that disclose the interior in one glance. By contrast, the Genesis Space is a space of gradual discovery, enhanced by the selection of a muted palette of colors and materials for its interior design. Furthermore, to mute the distracting presence of sales activities, the purchasing process is placed in a sequence of independent rooms. Furniture is blended into the separate rooms by using the same color and material as the space.

Photograph by Silvia Sandor, Courtesy of OMA

For its design of the Genesis Gangnam Store, AMO re-visited the conventional norm of dealership in automotive industry. The store is designed to be attentive to visitors’ needs and provide them with an authentic, analogue experience that cannot be substituted with digital technology. The design of the Genesis Gangnam Store has resulted in a set of guidelines for a global roll out strategy; the Genesis Gangnam store in Seoul will be the first application of a new automotive retail concept.

Photograph by Silvia Sandor, Courtesy of OMA

Photograph by June Young Lim, Courtesy of Hyundai

Photograph by June Young Lim, Courtesy of Hyundai

Photograph by June Young Lim, Courtesy of Hyundai

Photograph by June Young Lim, Courtesy of Hyundai

Photograph by June Young Lim, Courtesy of Hyundai

Photograph by June Young Lim, Courtesy of Hyundai

Photograph by June Young Lim, Courtesy of Hyundai

Photograph by June Young Lim, Courtesy of Hyundai

Photograph by June Young Lim, Courtesy of Hyundai

Photograph by June Young Lim, Courtesy of Hyundai

Photograph by Silvia Sandor, Courtesy of OMA

Photograph by Jay Jeon

Photograph by June Young Lim, Courtesy of Hyundai

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