What do you do when you need to relaunch something with a big bang? You really go out there, you let loose the cannon and hope to God it will have the desired impact. That’s what we did for Cross Stitch Pakistan. 

Cross Stitch is a pioneer fabric maker in Pakistan but they had yet to venture into the side of ready-to-wear fashion. They were introducing their apparel line and wanted to launch themselves formally with a blast, figuratively speaking 😁. Our location was in the high end mall of Karachi, the Dolmen Mall and our aim was to allure every passer by. We commissioned a showstopper – say hello to our grand marble portrait! Larger than life and so dramatic, yet so fluid, soft and feminine. Every eye stopped in awe and then got reeled into our store. Bang we did!

We imagined it to be a fashion exhibition inside an age-old museum – classic English paneling with high gloss black ceiling, gold metal displays and stained glass. What a recreation of the 19th century romantic era in modern times!

The layout was kept very simple. While the beautiful Romanesque sculpture and a meticulously carved console table drew you in, an intricately weaved marble ramp welcomed you. But ultimately, the clothes were the star of the show with strong ramp-like spotlights highlighting the beauty of each fabric. The experience was kept premium and hence the sinuous console table was the modern day cash till. Secondary features such as the changing room and storage rooms were tucked away at the back, adding to the museum-esque character of the space; with only products on display.

The flooring pattern of this space was derived from the weave of the cross-stitch itself.

The larger than life marble sculpture was especially commissioned for the project.

Project co-designed with a colleague Farhan Mian.