<h5-red>CLIENT<h5-red> EICHER MOTORS I AREA 9,600 SQFT I <h5-red>STATUS<h5-red> COMPLETED IN 2017 I <h5-red>TEAM<h5-red> PANKHURI GOEL, SHALINI SATISH KUMAR, RAMAN VIG, MUSTAFA LOKHANDWALA, LAURA ROBIN I <h5-red>PHOTOGRAPHER<h5-red> ANDRÉ J. FANTHOME
The exciting new space is a seamless amalgamation of retail space, a bar & restaurant, a gallery space, a bike-customisation area and a service centre. The buildings are planned on a half-acre plot of land as a series of independent yet interconnected structures, each of which tells its own story.
The central, traditional Portuguese-style structure where the old J&A kitchen used to be, anchors the space. Converted into a multifunctional gallery, the space currently houses and tells the story of the Royal Enfield’s legacy motorcycles, other engines and replicas that form the brand’s rich history. <rt-red>The building facade has been treated with specially-commissioned, locally-executed artworks based on Royal Enfield iconography as Azulejos-inspired installations created by Codesign and hand-painted onto tiles by Goan artisans.<rt-red>
<rt-red>Attached to this heritage structure, a double-height space formed by a steel framework and a traditional Goan roof houses the bar area and the first-floor dining space that has incredible views of the Baga creek.<rt-red> The double-height bar volume has a hand-painted backdrop by Monde Art, which takes the viewer through a meandering Goan road trip. A slowly moving, high-volume, low velocity rotor mounted on the 20-ft high ceiling ensures the presence of a gentle breeze in the space at all times.
Royal Enfield has a mandate of bringing a richer and more comprehensive experience of their iconic global brand to their customers. This has been reflected in the design approach of the project, which builds around the brand’s core values of Timelessness, Craftsmanship and an unadulterated love for motorcycling into the context of its setting. <rt-red>The industrially-crafted retail building with its zinc roof, laterite infill walls and the now distinctive “Royal Enfield” charcoal grey metal and glass facade effortlessly bridges its Goan setting with Industrial craftsmanship.<rt-red>
The double-height bar and restaurant has been flanked at the rear by a state-of-the-art service centre with a bike customisation zone. Here, one can find all the essentials, a tool kit, for instance, required to customise a motorcycle. This has been planned to encourage customers who do not have the resources or space to turn their imagination into reality.
As the next level of Brand Immersion, the Royal Enfield Garage Café is the brand’s first step in launching highly-curated, larger experiences in key motorcycling destinations. These go beyond selling motorcycles and gear, into offering a space for the motorcycling community to congregate in and experience the Royal Enfield brand and its commitment to “Pure Motorcycling”. <rt-red>Set as a cluster of buildings around a courtyard and coconut trees, the Garage Café delivers an experience that is Timeless, Contemporary, charmingly ‘Goan’ and unabashedly “Royal Enfield” at its core!<rt-red>
