“They wanted the new store to evoke a T-Mobile company store without mimicking it,” said Trio Display designer Bill Mondigo of Trio’s recent retail store design assignment. The assignment: Plan a space for an independent dealer of the popular cellphone service provider. “We were going for a clean and contemporary style that respected the brand without reinterpreting it.”

“We were going for a clean and contemporary style that respected the brand without reinterpreting it.”

The owners presented Trio with a shell and Bill and the design team laid-out a simple floor plan. The design incorporates ample signage for branding and an interior soffit that runs the perimeter. “The soffit takes what could be a rather standard rectangular space and gives it some character,” said Bill. Slatwall lines recesses in the soffit that hold phones and accessories. In a nod to environmental awareness, the client opted for bamboo flooring. Bamboo is tough, attractive, and, best yet, renewable. A combination of floods, spots, and pendants provide the lighting from an extensive track.

Trio designed fixtures for the entire store, “Mobile Zone,” from scratch, including benches and the customer counters, combining maple tops and aluminum-clad legs. In fact, brushed pewter aluminum veneer and varieties of maple are used liberally throughout.

The 1275 square-foot store will be opening in Temecula, California, in late October. Another location is in the works for San Francisco, California.