Against the backdrop
of the sharing and
experience economies,
Lexus adds a restaurant
for fine dining to its
growing portfolio of
cultural programming
destinations.
The
Road to
Loyalty
Words
TRACEY INGRAMgen HQ includes an experimental dining
space designed to pull in passers-by. The
research and design lab works ‘on a lot of
niche things’, says Space10’s programme
lead Kevin Curran. ‘Food is broad and
understandable. [The new initiative is] part
of our goal to open our doors to the larger
community on a daily basis.’
Against the backdrop of the sharing
and experience economies, it’s no surprise
that automobile manufacturers are on the
same page. After establishing Intersect by
Lexus in both Tokyo and Dubai – described
(somewhat vaguely) by the brand as spaces in
which to ‘experience the ethos of the Lexus
lifestyle without getting behind the steering
wheel of one of our cars... [places] for guests
to be entertained, inspired and educated’ –
Lexus has now added a New York outpost to
its portfolio. This time, the intention is much
clearer. Intersect by Lexus NYC is the first of
the brand’s cultural programming destina-
tions to feature a restaurant for fine dining.
According to Lexus, the move is more
of a natural progression than a radical depar-
ture from its core business. Intersect by Lexus
NYC’s general manager Kirk Edmondson
tells me that the project ‘fully embodies the
brand’s core value of omotenashi’. His transla-
tion of the Japanese word he references is
‘an unsurpassed commitment to exceptional
hospitality’. In a nutshell, he’s saying that »I CAN’T SAY I’ve ever thought about owning
a MINI. Granted, I’m not exactly the brand’s
target customer. For one, I live in Amsterdam,
where bicycles reign supreme. But I’ve heard
more about MINI in the past three years than
in the 30 or so before that. Why? Because
in 2016, the car brand became more than a
car brand. It launched MINI Living, tackling
increased urban density by applying to archi-
tecture its ‘creative use of space’ doctrine.
And MINI isn’t the only car brand
adapting to the times. In late 2017, Toyota
launched Drive to Go in Tokyo. The café-
cum-rental-kiosk responded to a downturn
in car ownership in line with the burgeoning
sharing economy. Millennials, discovered
Toyota, would rather rent an automobile than
own one. (By the way, MINI is also delving
into the car-sharing trend. Last year it started
trialling an app-controlled service in Spain
that enables owners to lend their vehicles to
friends, family or colleagues.) Drive to Go
may have reflected changing consumption
habits, but let’s focus for a moment on how.
Visitors entered a space developed by Archi-
cept City and Inamoto & Co to find an array
of free sandwiches and coffee. In other words,
hospitality helped to open the doors.
For those working with complex
concepts or selling luxury goods, food can
serve as the equivalent of a gateway drug.
Just ask Space10, whose new Copenha-FRAME LAB 147