Compact and Inviting: The Pumper Takeaway by Nan Arquitectos
Nan Arquitectos‘ design for the Pumper takeaway thoughtfully balances aesthetics and functionality in a small space. With compact designs, they focus on creating uncluttered environments that highlight the product without making the space feel cramped. The takeaway’s design draws inspiration from the main Pumper café, keeping a similar aesthetic while adapting it to the smaller scale.
A key challenge was ensuring the space felt open and inviting, like an extension of the street, where customers could quickly make purchases and enjoy a coffee. Sustainability was also important, with materials chosen to reflect traditional values while being environmentally friendly. Soft, even lighting was used to create a welcoming atmosphere without casting shadows, and warm wood elements helped connect the design to the bakery’s roots.
Photography by Ivan Casal Nieto, Published with bowerbird
Can you share Nan Arquitectos’ design approach, particularly when working with compact spaces like the Pumper takeaway?
The approach should always be different, since each project is unique. With small spaces we consider it important to “clean” so that the product can be viewed and the space does not become suffocating.
How did the previous design of the main Pumper café influence the aesthetic choices for this takeaway space?Â
It influenced in a notable way, since despite not being exactly the same, the aesthetic line is maintained while maintaining the work philosophy.
What were the biggest challenges in combining sales, exhibition, and functional requirements within such a minimal space?Â
The main challenge is that it be a fluid space and not become a claustrobobic space.Â
For this, the philosophy was that the space was a continuation of the street, a small refuge where you could make a purchase and have a coffee.
Sustainability is a core value of the Pumper philosophy. How did you incorporate sustainable materials and methods in the design of this compact takeaway?Â
The project must be complete, and be sensitive to this circumstance, for this reason the architecture must maintain these values ​​and transmit them. Materials have been used that are aligned with this idea and transmit traditional values.
Lighting plays a significant role in creating the right ambiance in such a small space. How did you achieve the desired minimalist lighting without casting shadows or compromising the visual clarity?Â
The idea is to have diffuse and concentrated light so that there are no unlit spaces and avoid shadows and thus project light throughout the product.
What role does tradition play in the design concept, particularly in connecting customers to the idea of wood and firewood as essential elements in bakery culture? How did this theme guide the material and design choices?Â
The wood, the warm colors and the warm light transport us to these bakeries with ovens where everyone went to pick up the bread.Â
The idea of ​​this establishment with respect to the previous one was to introduce the wood that ancestrally used to be stored to be used in wood-burning ovens.
