UKRARMOR军事商店丨乌克兰基辅

UKRARMOR

Architects: Sasha Martyniuk, Anastasiia Antoshkina, Yuliia PavliukCreative supervision: Slava BalbekCreative designers: Yevhenii Zavitaiev, Anush YehiiantsProject manager: Lucy NekrasovaProject area: 278 sq mProject year: 2024Location: Kyiv, UkrainePhoto credits: Misha Lukashuk

ABOUT | TASK | CONCEPT | DESIGN | TEAM

ABOUT

Ukrarmor is a high-quality military equipment store with its own armor production.

The store is located in downtown Kyiv, near the main entrance of the Central Railway Station, which became the country’s primary transportation hub after air traffic was halted due to the full-scale invasion.

TASK

Unlike other military stores, Ukrarmor wanted to create a space that was both functional and visually appealing, with a unique design tailored to its niche. The brand actively develops customer service and has a relaxed style of communication, so reflecting this in the space’s design seemed appropriate. Given the ongoing mobilization in Ukraine, the space needed to be welcoming not only to military personnel but also to civilians purchasing equipment for themselves or as a gift.

As this is Ukrarmor’s first offline store, one of the key aspects of our collaboration was developing flexible display systems that could be rearranged or combined if necessary, allowing the client to experiment with different layouts and arrangements.

CONCEPT

Ukrarmor is more than just a store; it’s a space that fosters a sense of community. Visitors can learn about new equipment, share experiences, or simply spend time with like-minded people, whether socializing with comrades or enjoying a game on PlayStation. The tactical store design didn’t require an elaborate concept but needed to be comfortable and accessible to a wide audience. Our concept was that the space should come to life through interaction with visitors – this is how elements like posters on the donation wall and stickers on columns and shelves will gradually appear.

The chosen visual concept combines natural, robust materials like stone with simple, functional options such as metal, concrete, and plywood. This combination creates a sense of safety.

DESIGN

The store's central focal point is a semicircular space with panoramic windows, framed by radial partitions. To preserve natural light and maintain the view from the windows, the partitions are designed to be translucent, and made of hollow concrete blocks. Inside, a metal frame provides stability to the structure and allows shelves to be attached on both sides, with the flexibility to adjust their layout as needed. Additional hangers for tactical socks and shoe accessories, along with sockets, are mounted at the ends. Suspended rails for clothing, secured with tie-down straps, are arranged around the perimeter.

We chose Coyote camouflage as the primary accent color of the design. In Ukraine, the military typically uses the classic pixel pattern in shades of green or olive. To maintain the overall military association while moving away from the commonly used colors, we opted for a less typical sandy hue.

Brown pouf blocks are placed throughout the area to offer seating for customers trying on shoes or waiting for friends from the fitting room. Lighting is provided by a massive custom round lightbox on the ceiling, and the room’s shape is highlighted by the navigation circle on the floor. Thanks to its striking visuals and overhead lighting, this area has become a popular filming location, with the brand’s content creators regularly shooting videos for social media here.

Military humor often plays on the contrast with the brutal reality of war, which is why pink patches, chevrons, and knives are popular among soldiers. To honor this feature, we suggested placing a pink fur sofa in the central area; however, the client ultimately opted for a more practical brown leather design.

Near the windows, there is a shoe-testing area, a section of the floor lined with natural stones. This allows customers to try out their purchase in conditions that closely mimic real-life use while adding a natural contrast to the store's modern, tech-focused vibe. In search of a unique stone texture, the team reviewed 18 different types of pebbles.

At the entrance, a perforated wall with integrated lighting is placed – this is one of the mobile systems mentioned earlier, featuring several types of mounts that allow for flexible equipment layout adjustments. For clarity, this area showcases nearly all available gear in one set, including a plate carrier vest filled with armor plates, a helmet, neck and groin protection, and other items from various sections of the store.

To the left of the entrance, clothing and backpacks are displayed, with three round windows serving as shelves for select items, ideal for highlighting specific products.

To the right of the entrance is a donation area, where visitors can pin up posters for their fundraisers or contribute directly by dropping money into a camouflage-painted plaster piggy bank.

The first hall, which includes the checkout area, is relatively dark due to the lack of natural light, so we added both cash desk and ambient lighting. This led to the creation of a custom lightbox featuring the Ukrarmor brand name in warm yellow, which complements the sandy Coyote shade and the colors of the navigation lines.

The checkout counter is made of microcement and plywood, featuring a milled logo. Behind the counter is a perforated wall for small items, with dedicated space for chevrons, as well as glass-enclosed shelves on the columns for items like watches, glasses, etc. Under the counter, there are shelving compartments for small trinkets and souvenirs.

Opposite the cash register is a display rack. It consists of a rectangular plywood box with top glazing, resting on hollow concrete blocks.

At the back of the hall, there are gabions filled with natural stones and equipped with wheels for mobility. They are covered in stabilized grass and serve as stands for mannequins or shoe displays.

Further down the walkway, there are two fitting rooms draped with Coyote-colored fabric. For convenience, they are positioned in full view, next to the clothing displays, rather than hidden in the corners of the space. Between the fitting rooms is a large mirror that diffuses daylight from the panoramic windows, visually expanding the space. It also serves as an Instagram-friendly zone.

Shelves displaying additional equipment are located next to the fitting rooms. To maximize space efficiency, they are equipped with metal rails and suspended with tie-down straps, reinforcing the military interior theme and ensuring secure fastening.

The additional room is surrounded by shelves along the perimeter, with the central focus featuring empty plate carriers mounted on the perforated wall. The shelves in the room are organized by product type, with ballistic panels, pouches, neck protection, and other items displayed. In this area, we added a stainless steel table to facilitate the assembly of protective kits and the testing of add-ons. Here, we introduced a new type of shelf featuring a three-row cascade, designed to maximize retail space and accommodate more products.

At the store entrance, a glass box filled with grenades serves as a visual focal point for visitors. At the client's request, a Ukrainian manufacturer produced shells without explosives, which were then painted in Coyote and beige hues.

Collaborating with Ukrarmor was not just an opportunity to add an unconventional retail design project to our portfolio; it was an invaluable chance to create a welcoming and comfortable space for our most important audience – the people who are defending Ukraine during the war.

TEAM

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