Redevelopment of Yves Rocher’s La Gacilly site
Yves Rocher set Interior Architecture & Design students at LISAA Rennes the task of proposing new housing solutions and new services to the visitors of their La Gacilly site.
A FORWARD-LOOKING PROJECT ON THE THEME OF SLOW NATURAL LIFE
How do you attract the 300,000 visitors to the La Gacilly site for more than one day? Yves Rocher asked fourth-year students on the interior architecture/design course at LISAA Rennes to find innovative solutions to this issue.
Working in teams, the young designers thought about new redevelopment to the site, where the headquarters and several infrastructures of the Yves Rocher brand are located: modernising the current housing solutions and proposing new ones, designing transport services, sports and leisure activities, etc. As part of Yves Rocher’s “natural slow life” concept, these potential solutions would enable tourist visits of several days to La Gacilly.
REDEVELOPING THE FOUR SITES AT LA GACILLY
In concrete terms, students had to develop the four sites at La Gacilly following an overall concept:
- designing mini-architectural structures for short stays at the naturel site near to the port: a mini-village of eco-lodges and related services for the summer season
- developing the banks of the river Aff and the port
- rethinking the scenography of the biggest open air photography festival in France, on the theme of nature and man
- turning the new housing development created by the town into an eco-residence, combining services for residents and visitors
Students presented their ideas to Yves Rocher on 3rd July. The results will be exhibited in a venue which represents the brand.
LA GACILLY – A SYMBOL OF THE BRAND
This village in the Aff valley, 60 kilometres from Vannes and Rennes, merges with the history of the Yves Rocher brand, which has found a balance between nature and wellness, farming and agriculture, the arts and crafts and industry. It is home to the group’s headquarters, two factories, a botanical garden, the eco-hotel spa and the Vegetarium.
La Gacilly is also visited by many tourists throughout the year coming to see the work of over 30 artisans, who have been set up here since 1971.
Finally, since 2003, La Gacilly has hosted the largest open-air photography festival in France, which presents the work of photographers in relation to nature and people.
