Bespoke luxury takes on a new dimension in this Mumbai designer store, as featured in AD Magazine.
Bespoke luxury takes on a new dimension at this designer haven in Mumbai, as featured in AD Magazine. Edra, Hessentia, Meridiani, Porro, RIVA1920, Royal Botania, and SieMatic converge under one roof at Soulstory, a meticulously curated space crafted by ZZ Architects.
Architects renowned for their grasp of bespoke luxury and savvy spatial planning; European brands celebrated for their unmatched craftsmanship; and a gleaming skyscraper in Mumbai synonymous with exclusivity—all converge to create Soulstory. Kapil Tyagi, alongside Florian Herth, envisioned this multi-brand haven to serve as a gateway to European high design in India.
He’s certainly right—this is not a showroom. ZZ Architects founders Krupa Zubin and Zubin Zainuddin ensured it’s way more than that. “We wanted to make it an extension of a home. Once you enter, you need to feel that you’ve been transported,” explains Zainuddin. As home-adjacent concepts go, this is the kind of space that hits the right notes the moment you step into the bright, white foyer-esque space with its tall ceilings and easy movement.
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“We were very particular about the light because it’s completely glazed from one side and it’s over looking a building. We wanted a soft cut in terms of the light filter ing in. And we didn’t fill up the space with products. We wanted to give visitors time to take things in at their own pace,” explains Zubin.
Everything here was chosen to showcase each brand and demonstrate how disparate philosophies, singular choices, and unique preferences harmonize. Like the Meridiani and Hessentia zones that offer distinct seating arrangements but seamlessly flow into each other. Or the warm vibe of RIVA1920, with its history rich wood pieces, that complements Edra’s bold drama in the dark den-like space. This leads out to the other flank of the entrance where the “Bear” sofa, Edra’s pièce de résistance, takes centre stage. As Zubin points out, “As you walk around, you discover the brands, [while] imbibing their philosophy. Each space is independent in itself but they connect beautifully.”
You can’t miss the carefully curated art either, for which the architects worked with Soulstory’s German art consultant, Mirko Mayer. “The final selection includes paintings and sculptures, some serious, some quirky,” says Zainuddin. And they are all perfectly in line with the overarching aesthetic—an open look, inviting light, and subtle palette that give the brands room to be noticed. The paradigm-shifting Soulstory, then, is about getting to the heart of high European design and walking away with the experience of being part of something remarkable.
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