Karimoku furniture completes designing the interiors of a new cafe in Japan

With the completion of the interior, Karimoku  Case Study yet again demonstrate their versatile and high-quality craftsmanship and modern, high-end design.

Japan’s leading wooden furniture manufacturer Karimoku Furniture Inc. together with its renowned high-end lifestyle brand Karimoku Case Study have just completed the interior design and furnishing of the Blue Bottle Coffee Minatomirai Cafe in Yokohama, Japan. Under the direction of one of the Karimoku Case Study brand initiators Keiji Ashizawa as lead architect and multidisciplinary Danish design studio Norm Architects, Karimoku realised a bespoke high-end interior with customized wooden furnishings as well as tailor-made furniture for the cafe. With the completion of the interior, Karimoku Case Study yet again demonstrate their versatile and high-quality craftsmanship and modern, high-end design.Selected pieces of the tailor-made furniture are available for pre-sale in Japan via the Blue Bottle Coffee online shop for a limited time.

The interior design

Karimoku Furniture and the two interdisciplinary design studios, who also founded the collaborative lifestyle brand Karimoku Case Study together in 2018, approached the new joint project with the same philosophy as a new Karimoku Case Study case: with a holistic approach to architecture and design and a strong focus on the native setting as well as high-quality craftsmanship and remarkable attention to detail. For renowned Blue Bottle Coffee, a network of cafes across the U.S., Japan, and Korea, an interior with a warm and inviting atmosphere was created. “We have aimed to create an atmosphere which welcomes the local community by mainly using wood, inspired by the park located by the Blue Bottle Coffee Minatomirai Cafe,” explains Keiji Ashizawa. The generous glass fronts integrate the adjacent park and allow plenty of natural light to enter. The gentle curves of the bar counter made of wood, manufactured by the skilled craftsmen of Karimoku, are also reflected in the soft shapes of the furniture.

 New furniture pieces by Karimoku Case Study

 All furniture specified in the Blue Bottle Coffee Minatomirai Cafe in Yokohama has been specifically designed for this project by the designers of Karimoku Case Study. “For us, there couldn’t be a better partner to team up with than Karimoku,” explains Frederik Werner, partner at Norm Architects. “They uphold a unique quality and approach to the manufacturing of wooden furniture, maintaining a focus on the craftsmanship combined with the latest robotics, making sure that their philosophy of high-tech and high-touch is truly embedded in each furniture piece leaving the factory.” A Cafe Chair, Bar Stool and Side Chair also designed by Norm Architects will be available in Japan for pre-sale via the Blue Bottle Coffee online shop for a limited time.

Cafe Chair
The Cafe Chair is a further development of the N-DC01 dining chair that was born from the Kinuta Project. Modification has been made so the chair is both more lightweight and petite, which in turn makes it very flexible and versatile without losing its character. The softness and warmth of the wood creates a more residential feeling to a classic cafe setting.

Bar Stool
The Bar Stool is, as the Cafe Chair, a line extension to the dining chair from an earlier project. The size of the backrest makes the chair more comfortable, while the natural lines in the design, underline the craftsmanship and production skills that have gone into a piece like this.

Side Chair
With clean lines, a crisp design language and a soft and comfortable inner, the Side Chair mimics the architecture of the Blue Bottle Coffee shop. With its low backrest and small footprint, it’s not really a dining chair, neither a stool – but combines the best of the two and therefore serves the real needs of the cafe.

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