The store features lighting from Tom Dixon and some furniture pieces by Minotti.
The store features lighting from Tom Dixon and some furniture pieces by Minotti.
Image: Russell Smith

Just completed by interior design duo Jaco Janse van Rensburg and Kay Abrahams of Envy & Co, the Shimansky store is smoking hot, channelling redefined luxury, and comes on the back of the pair’s decade-long relationship with the brand. For the team and CEO Yair Shimansky, modern luxury is about: “quiet time, open space, less frenetic stimulation, a stronger focus on human connections and a multi-zoned layout”, Janse van Rensburg explains.

Briefed to create a new-look store that would speak to the brand’s revamped identity and its maiden international store on New York’s 5th Avenue, he and Abrahams focused on creating a space that is intimate and sensuous, but streamlined. Given Shimansky’s fusion of contemporary jewellery design and handcrafted natural metals and stones, this tension was a dynamic that the designers wanted to explore throughout.

The smokey glass and brass door leading to the private consultation room was manufactured by Ernst H Design.
The smokey glass and brass door leading to the private consultation room was manufactured by Ernst H Design.
Image: Russell Smith
The bar with lighting by Lee Broom, stools from LA based Phase Design and the custom vinyl wall installation.
The bar with lighting by Lee Broom, stools from LA based Phase Design and the custom vinyl wall installation.
Image: Russell Smith

Wood, natural stone, velvets, leather and metals lend the space moodiness and tactility. Mirrors, both smoky and clear, have been used to bring glamour, without the glitz, and the store’s previous cool palette of silvers and blacks has been given a shot of depth and warmth with the presence of gold accents, warm grey and dark wood. All of this conveys luxury with a sense of comfort.

“Nothing in the store is mass-produced and neither is their jewellery,” Janse van Rensburg points out. Apart from some of the furniture and lighting, Envy & Co custom designed most of the store’s interior in keeping with Shimansky’s penchant for craft and bespoke elements. The door leading to the private consultation room is an example. Made from smoky safety glass and brass sheets, the design was inspired by the base grid of a polished “My Girl” diamond - Shimansky’s patented cut. The plush, handloomed, deep-pile rug from Gonsenhausers Fine Rugs is another bespoke design.

A design detail from the bar, 3D vinyl applied over black mirror.
A design detail from the bar, 3D vinyl applied over black mirror.
Image: Russell Smith

The store has been designed with a layout to suit various needs, from a couple who want privacy to an individual looking to browse the display cases. The team has also made a concerted effort to offer clients an experience that stimulates all the senses. A gentle glow emanates from scented candles, soft music plays throughout the store, the bar offers a bespoke cocktail service and fresh flowers and warm lighting lend the space a sense of comfort not typically experienced in the retail sector.

“The intimacy of the space is a direct manifestation of what luxury has become,” Janse van Rensburg adds.

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