Founded in 2013, Elephant Grounds is a well-established, specialty coffee shop brand with several cafes in their native Hong Kong. The concept for the Chengdu flagship store came from the idea to 'level-up' the experience and evolve the brand more naturally.

The strategies incorporated in the design were to blur the boundaries between interior and exterior, prioritise the use of local natural materials (bamboo and timber), expose the processes and showcase the retail items as a curated gallery. The layout allows staff and customers to seamlessly engage with the street.

A continuous terrazzo platform extends from the cafe interior forming the banquette, table top and the cafe work-surfaces, transitioning into the exterior where it becomes a continuous shared table for groups. Suspended bamboo with integrated LED lighting form the ceiling to give the feeling of continuity within the long, narrow space.