Rethinking the neighbourhood market

After opening its first grocery store in the Villeray - Saint-Michel - Parc-Extension borough in 2020, Montreal-based fruit chain, Fraîchement Bon, is opening another one in the same neighborhood, on Jarry Street. For this second edition, the architecture and design firm Dupont Blouin - which had signed Fraîchement Bon Villeray - remains at the helm and refines its expertise in food store design, wishing to reinvent the grocery store experience.

Photo credit: Olivier Blouin

With the Fraîchement Bon Jarry fruit store, Dupont Blouin continues its foray into the design of neighborhood businesses with an efficient and friendly concept. Wishing to make the routine activity of grocery shopping even more fun and enjoyable, the architectural duo relies on a design that emphasizes light, curves, and color for a smooth, efficient, and fluid experience.

Photo credit: Olivier Blouin

A neighborhood grocery store in tune with its environment

For several years now, new businesses have been opening on Jarry Street, contributing to the revitalization of the neighborhood. The Fraîchement Bon family business forms part of that perspective, with a desire to contribute to the fresh winds of change that the neighborhood is experiencing. For several years now, new businesses have been opening on Jarry Street, contributing to the revitalization of the neighborhood. The Fraîchement Bon family business forms part of that perspective, with a desire to contribute to the fresh winds of change that the neighborhood is experiencing.

Photo credit: Olivier Blouin

A round concept for a reinvented experience

Located just around the corner from the Jarry Metro station, the grocery store enjoys a prime location. To attract passers by, the architects have opted for an inviting design with a strong visual impact. Through the bay windows, furniture including a large fruit tray topped by a curved light fixture, like a suspended lantern, invites visitors to enter. That warm element single handedly sums up the concept developed by the architects. Inspired by the Freshly Good logo and the shape of the radish, the design proposes a circulation all in roundness. Instead of getting lost in a maze of aisles, the furniture, in the form of a band, accompanies the circuit and dresses the store: a continuous, elegant, and unifying gesture that makes movements more fluid and simplifies the experience of the route to the maximum.

Photo credit: Olivier Blouin

Photo credit: Olivier Blouin

The design encourages as much natural light as possible. The store's glass façade lets in outside light and the northern orientation bathes the store in a soft glow without harming the food. Along the windows, low furniture displays certain products in the window, while allowing others to be seen further into the store. From the street, gazes plunge into the fruit shop, attracted by the colors, the layout, and the perspective effect generated by the depth of the premises. From the store, the large, unobstructed windows keep patrons in constant contact with the street and its bustle, mimicking the lively atmosphere of public markets.

Photo credit: Olivier Blouin

A palette of colors and materials that suggests the freshness of the products

The choice of pre-painted steel makes it easy to wash surfaces such as the checkout furniture, refrigerator, and display baskets. To balance the cooler, industrial aesthetic of metal, the architects opted for integrated wood furniture and a crisp color palette. Between soft green and forest green, the tone is plant-based and fresh, reminiscent of the fresh produce sold there. With its fresh colors, custom wood furniture, round design, and intuitive flow, Fraîchement Bon Jarry is part of the active commercial life of Jarry Street. Simplifying the shopping experience, Dupont Blouin makes grocery shopping a pleasant, even playful experience. It is a refined and inviting design that never loses sight of the essential: the products, which it humbly serves.

Photo credit: Olivier Blouin

About Dupont Blouin

Dupont Blouin is an architecture and design firm based in Montreal, created by the association of two complementary architects, Marie-Josée Dupont and Olivier Blouin: yin and yang, measure and deployment, cold and hot, eye and eye. Lovers of architecture and nature, they prefer pure lines, precise details, and organized and integrated systems. Specialized in the creation of custom projects, each detail is thought out, each material is privileged for its durability, and each color is combined for harmonious interiors and exceptional spaces.