We are thrilled to announce that Ichiba, Europe’s largest food hall, is now ready for its grand opening celebration on Saturday 14th July, at Westfield.
Last night’s opening party was a big success, and it was excellent to see how our design had been translated into a functional, beautiful space.
We would like to take a moment to thank the Japan Centre Group for inviting us to the opening event celebration: Their hospitality was exceptional. From the way we were greeted and taken care of all evening, to the fabulous traditional drumming. ceremonial breaking of the Sake barrel and considered speeches, to the fantastic okonomiyaki, sushi, sashimi (a studio favourite), and miso cauliflower, we were very impressed.
As Caroline Hamlett, Interiors Team leader said, the night was “a lively atmosphere filled with the sound of drums, the smell of fresh cooking and happy faces”.
From a design perspective, we were pleased to see that a real effort had been taken care of with the merchandising of the space, which looked really spectacular. It was a stark contrast to the empty box the now full, dynamic space began as, as Richard Agombar, Technical Coordinator stated:
After seeing the cavernous space we started with, and witnessing—week-by-week—the progress and determination by everyone involved, it was pleasing to see everything come together and be part of the resulting celebrations.
We’ll be sharing more from Ichiba in the coming weeks ahead, but for now, enjoy these photographs and we hope you get to visit Ichiba and sample everything this brilliant Japanese food hall has to offer.
