To wrap, to label, to close, to reopen, to recycle, to send, to return. An open invitation to do things at Posti Helsinki 10, a post office where efficiency and organization meet contemporary style and a sustainable approach.
For the shipping and logistics services of Posti (the Finnish postal system), the store has been completely modernized to come back to life inside the historic Postitalo building – the central headquarters of the Finnish agency of postal service and telecommunications – located in the center of Helsinki.
Hints of a glorious past mingle with an innovative concept based on simplicity, enjoyability and personalized functioning, in keeping with the original vision of the Finnish studio Fyra (founded by Eva-Marie Eriksson, Hanna Neuvo, Niina Sihto and Tiina Närkki) which has handled the interior design, in collaboration with the consulting company Motley.
Everything has its own place: the absolute rigor of the layout of the spaces and the furnishings keeps faith with the main guideline of the project, “everything flows,” to create fluid movements for visitors inside the space – whether clients act on their own to retrieve packages, or rely on personalized assistance. This viewpoint of liquid ambience is reflected in the bench, which borders the wall with large full-height windows, almost in an infinite undulating movement, echoing the functionalist architecture of the building. The shelving, counters and storage units have been carefully organized to facilitate specific activities, also thanks to vivid, intuitive graphics that characterize the space and its objects.
The office and its function become even more distinctive thanks to skillful use of color that brings overall harmony. In a primarily neutral setting, the typical palette of the Posti identity (orange and white) meets the tenuous warmth of brown, that of cardboard boxes and wooden surfaces, while the reflecting finish of the lockers expands spatial perception, adding a sense of depth.
The project for Posti Helsinki 10 conveys the entire design language of the Fyra studio: a human-centric approach, aimed at the community, to create all-inclusive experiences, while – above all – fostering principles of sustainable development. The rooms have been redesigned to preserve existing features as fully as possible, including repair of already installed equipment (like the old parcel vending machines); special spaces have been set aside for the recycling of materials. Posti Helsinki 10 represent an evolution of the intuitive functioning of the previous project by Fyra for Posti, Box by Posti: an original self-service store for online shopping.
Photo Credit: Riikka Kantinkoski
