a1 lounge
Vienna
EOOS

Fog transports cell phone buyers into the future

	Index | Project Specs
	Click here for slide show. Photo © Paul Prader

It seems hard to believe, but mobile telephones only became ubiquitous within the last decade. But what’s especially surprising is that despite the rapid pace of innovation within the cell phone industry itself—today’s most advanced phone becomes obsolete within a few months—retail environments have yet to express the technological revolution that these devices embody. A1, an Austrian mobile phone maker, hired EOOS to rethink cell phones retailing: the result is the A1 Lounge.

Located on Vienna’s main shopping street, A1 Lounge transports visitors into the future—today. Visitors enter the store via a five-foot-long tunnel through the front wall. This façade is comprised of two layers of glass containing a hollow inner cavity that three computer-controlled generators fill with fog. At certain times of day, the fog dissipates to permit direct views onto the street, while at other times it emits only a warm glow of daylight. To reinforce the sensation that visitors are being transported to a fantastic new world, the entry passage is lit from the floor a disorienting touch.

For the white-walled foyer, where A1’s latest telephones are showcased, EOOS designed a series of display cases that look as though they are floating in space and tethered to the floor by an umbilical cord. Visitors peruse calling plans on touch-activated computer screens, then swipe clear plastic keys to place items into virtual shopping carts. A “future ramp” leads to a second floor bar, lined with holographic projections of new phones currently in development, while a basement level contains the cashier’s desks and merchandise pick-up area.

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Formal name of project:
a1 lounge

Location:
Vienna

Gross square footage:
8,073 sq. ft.

Owner:
Mobilkom Austria

Architect:
EOOS
Zelinkagasse 2/6
1010 Vienna, Austria
43-1-405-39-87 tel.
43-1-405-39-87-80 fax
design@eoos.com
www.eoos.com

Click here to see all the people and products behind this project