AESOP – Skin Care That Thinks Outside The Box

Since being established by Dennis Pahitis twenty years ago, Aésop skincare has become an uncontested success story in the notoriously ficklebeauty industry — focused on providing its worldwide clientele with thehighest quality botanical skin care, rather than subscribing tomainstream-cosmetic anti-aging hype. Aésop now have 78 internationalstockists, plus 20 signature stores including stores in Paris, London,Sydney and their most recent Melbourne addition, Flinders Lane.
In keeping with Aésop tradition — that every store is different;conceived and designed individually so as that each store is areflection and celebration of its location — the Flinders Lane storedoes not disappoint, providing its customers with a design andinfrastructure that is just as alternative as Aésop’s skin careproducts. Located in one of Melbourne’s most interesting precincts, theFlinders Lane store interior is made entirely of industrial-gradecardboard; from the display shelving, to the massive eastern fa’ade,and even the counter tops— proving that cardboard can be both strikingand structurally sturdy if it’s engineered well.

Designed by local interior architects Rodney Eggleston and Anne-LaureCavigneaux of March Studios, the ambient new store has drawn attentionfrom all sorts of passers by. Store manager, Kate, says she wasn’texpecting how amazed customers would be by the store’s design. ‘It’sclear it’s a very tactile environment. Most people come in and tend towant to touch it all.’
The Flinders Lane store is located at Shop 1C, 268 Flinders Lane,Melbourne. For a full list of Aésop products and stockists visit www.aesop.net.au. By Anna Byrne.