11 Dec 2019
Working at Radius we are constantly submerged in the self storage world, whether it be attending events, filming original content, or processing loads of data - we are very invested in this industry and our office environment would prove it.
That being said, I recently got the opportunity to run away from storage for a couple of weeks… in the form of my honeymoon. I got married and my new wife and I packed our bags for Thailand, leaving our beautiful country in order to explore an entirely different one.
We bookended our Thailand getaway in the city of Bangkok, which netted us four trips to and from the Bangkok airport to the city center. Conveniently located along that strip of road is a Redd Self Storage facility that towers over the bustling highway, collecting the attention of half a million drivers daily.
Designed by OpenBox Architects, it was built in 2017 to resemble stacks of cardboard boxes on top of one another, with a layer of transparent wrapping material. ‘Red’ is the main facade color as well as the brand identity, and project name. Red color emphasize strong visual identity, while the hue was adjusted to give a touch of ‘Thainess’.
While it does stand out, it also has been tailor-made based on Thai users behavior. While the facility provides storage solutions for the increasingly populated urban residencies, it also supports fast-growing online distribution businesses scaling across the city.
Unit sizes were determined based on market studies conducted to establish a ratio of personal goods vs business goods. The location and positioning of the building was also strategically mapped out, as the physical site acts as Redd’s flagship facility. Facing the Eastern express way, the overall shape was designed to provide large signage, visible to both inbound and outbound traffic. The front facade essentially acts as an enormous billboard, visible to the half million drivers every day which provides secondary business opportunity for clients.
On top of these features, the self storage facility also offers co-working space, meeting rooms & a cafe, as well as an abundance of parking spaces.
As it turns out, I'm not the only one to have taken notice to the roadside struture. The modern and innovative design of the facility has garnered attention from architecture magazines, and was featured on the cover of Thailand Architecture in Steel 7. The building was also an ARCASIA awards finalist. For a short flight to Thailand (ha), you can snag a tour of the building Dec 14th & 15hth 2019!
