Jewel garden

Jewel garden
Indian retailer Tanishq redefines the traditional U.S. jewelry store model

By Erin M. Loewe, Contributor
April 01, 2009

Randhir Singh, Pompei A.D. LLC, New York

With metals and gemstones as their medium, jewelry artisans are inspired to bend and mold materials into wearable pieces of art. New to the United States, Indian jewelry store Tanishq carries pieces whose inspiration are found in nature, philosophy and art, but goes one step further and creates a store environment to match. Each jewelry piece is part of an overall collection (such as rain, spring or lotus) and is housed in floating glass cases flanked by live plants. The resulting environment feels more like a hidden oasis than a traditional jewelry store, which is exactly what Tanishq and its U.S. store designer, New York-based Pompei A.D. LLC, were going for.

Randhir Singh, studio director at Pompei A.D., says the garden idea came about by bringing some basic company elements—nature, metals and stones-—together. “Humans and jewelry both come from the earth,” he says. “Creating a garden-like atmosphere helped us define the finishes in the store and the flow through the store.”

One of the many companies held by Mumbai, India-based Tata Group , Tanishq opened its second U.S. store inside the Garden State Plaza in Paramus, N.J., in November 2008. Like the first U.S. store in Schaumburg, Ill., the 2,200-sq.-ft. Garden State store exudes the feeling of a secret garden, where one might happen upon an exciting wearable treasure. Gone are the right angles and endless rows of glass cases that divide customer from employee, says Bhuwan Guarav, head of sales operations for Tanishq USA.

“When we were doing our research, we found that people wanted a store where they could relax and appreciate the jewelry,” Guarav explains. “That was the beginning of the garden concept, having non-linearity and placing the themed collections throughout different locations in the store. The design worked with our philosophy of being customer-driven, not competitor-driven.”

Even though the store is in a mall, its façade lets shoppers know that it is decidedly different from a traditional American jewelry store. A translucent, laser-cut, filigree-style screen called a “jaali” divides the world of sparkling gems from the rest of the mall. “It gives shoppers a first glimpse of the store and what lies behind it, without revealing too much,” says Pooja Rao-Pillai, project manager at Pompei A.D.

John Sotir, vice president and project executive at general contractor Mackenzie Keck Construction Inc., Rockaway, N.J., says everyone involved on the project wanted to use as many sustainable, renewable resources as possible. Reclaimed antique pine floors show the dings and dents of time and are not glued down, providing natural movement and creaking underfoot. Although the Garden State store flooring has a darker stain than the Schaumburg store, it still complements the earthy yellow and terra-cotta hues that wash over the store’s walls.

Lighting is a critical element in any jewelry store, but it was especially important to preserve the feel of Tanishq. “We worked very closely with The Lighting Workshop out of New York City to stay within a tight budget and stringent energy codes,” Sotir says. “We wanted to pinpoint white light to show off stones and metals while still having enough electricity left over to light the rest of the store.” In the end, a combination of LED, halogen and incandescent lighting in recessed fixtures and chandeliers provided the right balance of illumination.

The fixtures throughout Tanishq’s American stores echo the organic, natural feeling of the jewelry and the rest of the design. Singh says the fixtures and layout were also the result of wanting to improve the jewelry buying experience. “We wanted the sales person next to the shopper instead of on the other side of the counter,” he explains. “All of the jewelry ended up on perimeter walls or floating concrete walls in the middle. It changes the paradigm of the salesperson and shopper interaction, making it a more casual friendship than a business relationship.”

In addition, Tanishq’s visual merchandising ties in natural elements. The design team consulted with plant specialists to further enhance the space. “We wanted the plants to cascade over the floating walls in the middle and the perimeter walls, creating a lush, green environment,” Singh says. “The plants themselves were not intended to be neat like a topiary. We wanted them to add this degree of disorder, to grow the way they want to grow and bring wildness into the environment.”

Guarav says the first two Tanishq stores in America will serve as prototypes for the stores they plan to roll out sometime in the coming year. Until then, the company will consider customer feedback to keep enhancing its shopping experience. “As expected, we’ve heard very positive testimonials,” Guarav says. “Customers consider it a very differentiated store. They like the layout and the ambience provided by the environment.”