IDPA Japan Design Award

2025 International Design Pioneer Award | Japan Tokyo
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Decade the love

by Touch Design

Projet Description

"DECADE" is a synonym for time, and a very long time span.
In the Oxford Dictionary, the definition of DECADE is ten years. But for the two principals of DECADE CAFE, DECADE is not only a decade, but also a process, which is all the beauty and romance that they have experienced in their lives. Across the time and space to meet, between him and her, between them and coffee, DECADE CAFE witnessed a persistent love, and with ten years to polish, precipitation, making the coffee culture to the acme of ingenuity.
Under the cloak of rapid urban development, people are good at hiding in reinforced concrete buildings, trying to obtain psychological security in concrete wrapping. This DECADE CAFE, created by Touch Design, is the first coffee shop in Tianjin to advocate a slow lifestyle with music criticism, music culture and fashionable peripheral products. It tries to depict the island of ideals and soft hearts in the current impetuous and fast fast-food life.
DECADE CAFE is located at No. 93 Chifeng Road, Tianjin, adjacent to the most prosperous Binjiang Road Commercial Street in Tianjin, nestled in the quiet tree-lined street. The landmark facade of white and orange terrazzo, the unique combination of coffee and music reviews, made the cafe an instant hit and soon ascended the throne of Tianjin Cafe TOP1 after its opening. With the classic and pure white orange terrazzo as the overall visual output focus, through the large glass window and custom-made white minimalist doors to create a concise and transparent effect, introducing abundant light for the long and narrow space, and at the same time, you can get a first glimpse of the internal space level.
Linear lighting inlaid in a circle of terrazzo is the most striking entrance sign of the cafe. From the outside to the inside, the entrance surrounded by linear lights seems to be an extension of some kind of consciousness, as if entering a time tunnel, constantly passing through ten years ago and ten years later. The door head is designed as a square circle of white and orange interlaced terrazzo, which is spread out to both sides and surrounded by the old city walls on both sides, like a new fireworks embedded in the old ribbon, and like a fashionable postcard. Many people tell us that DECADE is very beautiful after nightfall, which illuminates the whole Chifeng Road. The warm white orange terrazzo with the striking linear lighting is like an illustrations in the street. It is so simple, pure and capable, making the shop stand out from the surrounding environment.
Attracted, so close, so amazing, it is like a transparent sea like Zakynthos jelly, seemingly shallow, but in fact far-reaching. Limited by the hardware of the house, when we designed the original intention, we constantly thought about how to make such a deep and long, dimly lit street-side shop a clear stream in the coffee industry, so that our design can be valued and maximize the profits of the two clients in the shop. For this reason, we have retained part of the old top and painted it white, which gradually allows customers to enter the core area of the cafe, and at the same time adds a sense of love and ritual to the coffee. In the area of about 60 square meters of space, through the design of the original space to eliminate the sense of constraint, but let it become a little interesting.
Many people say that the this cafe is like a treasure waiting for music and coffee lovers to open. Mr. Ding, one of the principals of DECADE CAFE, has collected more than 30000 old records and various rare record posters, he joked with us which can be changed into a villa if all of them are sold. Therefore, we hope to integrate coffee and culture, art and music through design, with such a unique gift to carry the dreams of two clients.
The left and right sides of the glass door entrance are designed to display old records on the wall, which highlights the owner's taste and also reflects the theme culture of the cafe's music review. Next to the door, the sculpture holds a tray, which holds customized coffee cups and surrounding products, highlights the theme culture of the coffee shop. As a transition between the indoor and outdoor conversion of the sunken space and the entrance space, the second linear light separates the open and wrapped space, redefining the relationship between the interior of the space.
Mirrored stainless steel cleverly hides the storage area and forms a visual widening, dispersing the narrow sense of space, plus a circle of symbolic linear lights to form its own architectural language. People shuttle in it, without the slightest sense of awkwardness, in the span of space to open the artistic journey of records and coffee.
The fair faced concrete chandelier, pure white long table and acrylic blue seat echo the overall style, highlighting the modern and advanced sense. It smooths the anxiety of the heart and brings people a peaceful experience. The single passenger area is separated from the multi-person seat by the aisle, and the limited space is reasonably arranged while ensuring noninterference. The terrazzo chandelier with metal texture once again gives the soul of the space, concrete, terrazzo, metal and other materials with soft and eye-catching linear lamp belt design, creating a warm, private, amazing atmosphere.Seats face the wall, so that single customers can come to the store to maximize the immersion in personal thinking.
The dessert cabinet and bar are completely transparent, allowing a glance at the grinding, extraction, coffee shape and production process. The concise and delicate modelling sets off the products with a low-key attitude, making people focus their vision on coffee and dessert, deducing a very pure modernist style.
In the dimension of infinite extension of time and space, the interpretation of DECADE is no longer a short "ten years", but has been endowed with more beautiful meanings. In the city full of vigilance and alienation, the music, coffee, art and reading all merge and react to each other in this decade, forming a new form, and ultimately depicting the utopia of beauty and romance in people's hearts. With the unique brand operation mode and the ingenious works of Touch design, DECADE CAFE has emerged as a young star in Tianjin's coffee industry.

Yong Zhang

Yong Zhang, senior interior designer, the founder and design director of Touch Design. He graduated from the engineering management major of Tianjin University, and received Bachelor's Degree. Focusing on interior design for more than 15 years, he has led many large-scale and high-complexity design projects, and won the unanimous praise of the industry with professional ability and rigorous attitude. At the same time, he has achieved good results in many domestic and foreign design competitions.
Design Concept
In Yong Zhang's opinion, design should touch the heart, trigger the aesthetic feeling, stimulate the experience and guide the direction. Under his leadership, Touch Design has spent more than 10 years of accumulation and persistence, constantly creating a new life style and living environment, realizing the highest value of space design, making design a journey of thinking, which can not only remind people of a moment in the past, but also bring us into a future different from the present.

Xin Ma

Xin Ma, senior interior designer, the co-founder, executive deputy general manager and design director of Touch Design. He graduated from the engineering management major of Tianjin University. As the brand initiator of Touch Design, a comprehensive service organization dedicated to dedicated to providing integrated design and construction solutions for high-end private houses, commercial and office Spaces in China, Xin Ma has more than 12 years of experience in interior design. He respects and inspires every designer to have the ideal of design and the courage to practice design. Driven by his series of brand innovation ideas, this design brand, which is always young but has been active in China's interior design industry for many years is getting increasingly mature.
Design Concept
Xin Ma's motto is to be the forerunner of rare design and to be a rare design company. He pursues the lasting vitality of space, and believes that even the best design works also need exquisite details of the craft to reflect. His design concept does not limited to a certain design style, with the precise positioning of the customer's target demand, he combines design sense, humanization and intelligent, and achieves high-quality and efficient spatial solutions through artistic expression.

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