Supermarket in N. Erythraia by KLab Architecture

Thanopoulos Supermarkets, a family-operated business, was completed in 2019. It's a leading small supermarket chain that's known for stocking specially imported products that can only be found at Thanopoulos.

As stated by the architect: KLab's philosophy when it comes to the design process is to facilitate the customer and consumer, but also to create a different shopping experience. With the design of the facade, they aimed to integrate the large building into the wider neighborhood with bold architectural gestures.

In the basement, glass windows were opened to draw natural light from the ramp that leads to the garage. The openings created internal views both on the ramp and inside the store, making orientation within the basement much easier.

The ramp was an integral part of the store experience, and it was given almost as much attention as a work of art. The floor plan of the basement was changed to make movement through the products simpler and to create sections for products of the same type. In addition, special furniture was designed for displaying pharmaceutical products, books, toys, and candles.

A new grocer's area was added to the ground floor, with metal counters simulating those of popular markets. The fish corner was designed with marble, stainless steel, and galvanized sheet metal to directly reference the old outdoor Greek fish markets and their stalls.

The exterior of the store had to match the renovations of the other two stores. The interior needed a major reorganization to fit the needs of today's customers. Before the renovation, the store's products were of better quality than the space itself, and this needed to be fixed.

After renovations, the supermarket's ground floor, basement, and loft occupy a total area of 2100m2. The shelves have been rearranged, so the store's layout has changed. Each department has its own identity, with the corresponding custom-made furniture from KLab.

The height of the ceiling was not enough for the installation of a false ceiling, so a simple structure was created with vertical lines of plexiglass illuminated in between by LED lamps. This allowed for a gradient light ceiling with OSB as background. At the entrance of the store, which is double in height, the Plexiglas are cut larger, creating a three-dimensional light ceiling.

We didn't want our exterior design to be just another supermarket facade. We wanted it to tell a story and be something eye-catching and exciting. The old, symmetrical facade with balconies and terraces made of etalbond was too complex and needed to be changed. The proposal that was chosen was to collect all the edges created by the separate balconies in a curved metal face that would embrace and contain all the structural disturbance of the previous face. The new design for the perforated metal facade features a sculptural treatment of the face while a linear notch at the height of the old parapet allows the view from the offices of the 2nd floor to be unobstructed and the diffusion of sunlight to flow into these spaces. At the upper and lower ends of the facade, recesses are created, deconstructing it, so that the facade acquires a more dynamic and sculptural form, while also serving functional reasons in relation to how the new skin rests on the old building. The filling elements of the structure are made of perforated aluminum sheets, while its support is made of metal steel carriers that have been placed and designed in such a way that their participation in the appearance is as minimal as possible.

Location: Harilaou Trikoupi 55 N. Erythraia, Athens
Architectural Study: KLab Architecture - Konstantinos Lambrinopoulos
Design team: Konstantinos Lambrinopoulos, Evangelia Kakava, Katerina Tsitsiva, Argyro Efstathiou, Rebecca Siandou.
Construction management: Future Constructions
Design period: 2018
Construction period: 2018-2019
Photographer: Marianna Bisti