El Pibe Poblenou
To create this commercial interior design project, it was clear to us that it was essential for the new premises to maintain the essence of its predecessor, adapting it to its new location in a more dynamic, touristy and lively neighbourhood such as Barcelona’s Poblenou.
For this reason, the design of the commercial furniture was chosen based on the company’s corporate line, as is also the case with the use of the establishment’s chromatic range, in which we played with bright and very luminous colors.
One of this establishment’s commercial design’s priority was for the proposal to breathe the neighbourhood’s personality, so we made a custom-made suit so that the residents would feel completely identified and that it would summarize the transformation process the neighbourhood had undergone over the last few years.
It was a brave decision from the owner, who abandoned the path of standardization, leaving behind a type of interior design and decoration carried out by the majority of franchises, opening the way to a new concept, in which the premises adapt to the place where they are to be conceived.
Commercial design in El Pibe Poblenou
The commercial design for El Pibe Poblenou is a very personal renovation project for bars and restaurants. The restaurant chain El Pibe entrusted the Molins Design team with the commercial interior design of its fifth restaurant located in La Rambla del Poblenou (Barcelona), some time after refurbishing its flagship, located in República Argentina street, also in Barcelona.
This proposal covers the path that we had previously traced in the República Argentina store, when the “El Pibe” brand began a process of profound change in its entire corporate image and in its stores aesthetics and operation management. In this suitable space suitable, we have custom-made furniture, design pieces suitable for commercial decoration and bright colors that capture any customer’s attention.
The premises are located in a privileged location, right in front of the Alianza theater in Poblenou.
The building that houses it, located between party walls, had to be completely renovated, so that we could add an extra floor to the space, which is used to condition the storage services, garbage room and staff dressing room.
One of the basic premises when dealing with the facade’s design was the permeability with the street. We wanted to look for the already known concept of “free escape”, which consists of designing a kind of openings that do not block users’ free movement, so that exterior and interior space should be confused.
To design the facade and the outdoor terrace we made a model of awning with articulated arms in lacquered aluminium, outdoor chairs from Contel and customized sunshades from the same firm.
Custom design for El Pibe
A high bar, with a guillotine opening, becomes the only element of enclosure between the interior and the Rambla, a fundamental piece custom designed by our team, which is also used as a bar for “tapas” consumption at street level. For the bar’s interior distribution we kept its the original location and the kitchen’s.
The approach of the furniture facing the public is proposed in three different ways: first, the high bars for six diners, made in red krion and designed by our studio, then the circular low tables for four people, custom-made in solid oak wood and finally, an area with a sofa upholstered in red leatherette, which is accompanied by 70x70cm double-thickness black compact tables, also designed by Molins Design.
The two 1,500-litre beer tanks were painted in an intense yellow, becoming one of the main protagonists of the space.
Also noteworthy are all the exposed pipes that carry the beer to the various pumps in the bar, creating a surprising effect of industrial, colourful and eye-catching character.
The coolers behind the bar are designed by Fryca, while the display modules, made up of different depths and elevations cubes, are an exclusive design of our studio, in stained oak veneer. The high tables with tire bases are a custom design by our interior design team.
Beer-jug
suspended luminaires sketch
For the commercial design of “El Pibe Poblenou” we chose red for the main bar and the independent bars, as a nod to traditional 60’s American cafeterias.
This chromatic proposal, in combination with the proposed atrezzo, such as the surfboards and the fixed-gear bicycles hanging on the wall, help us to conceive an original and surprising place.
The graphics on the walls try to evoke the neighbourhood’s industrial past, so we decided to use blackboards and mirrors that allow us to create an interesting and effective visual game to communicate the interior with the exterior space.
The chosen stools for the bars are the Deja-Vu model by Magis and the suspended lamps on tubular structures with red electric cable and glass pitcher are an exclusive design by Molins Design.
Stainless steel for the kitchen
Both for the interior of the kitchen, which is presented in semi-open format, and for the modules and refrigerators installed in the interior area of the main bar, we chose stainless steel pieces from the specialized firm Fryca, so that we managed to multiply the industrial concept that we appreciate in other elements implemented in the premises.
Full-coloured restrooms
For the design of the bathrooms we continue to use the same chromatic range used in the rest of the room, with red, yellow and black as the absolute protagonists, applied in the form of tiles that cover the walls of the space.
The sink is the Senso Square model by Roca.
Bathroom cladding sketch
