The Shop-House Renaissance: Top Trends for 2023
The classic shop-house building, with a small retail space or restaurant on the ground floor and living quarters above, is seeing a major resurgence. These mixed-use spaces are beloved for their charm, functionality, and efficient use of expensive urban real estate. As more people move back into cities and want the experience of popping downstairs to a café or boutique, shop-houses are having a heyday. What shop-house trends should you expect to see this year?
Sustainability Steps to the Forefront
Today’s shop-house owners and tenants want to reduce their environmental impact. We’ll see more renewable energy like solar panels on shop-house roofs in 2023. Inside, expect finishes and furnishings made from sustainable materials like bamboo along with energy-efficient LED lighting. Shop-houses may also install green roofs, rain barrels, and other nature-inspired elements. The days of shop-houses being energy hogs are over.
Comfort Food Reigns Supreme
The pandemic saw a boom in takeout, delivery, and comfort food, trends that continue strong. Shop-house restaurants for 2023 will emphasize good old-fashioned dishes done extremely well, from perfect pizza to the ideal burger to mac and cheese executed to cheesy perfection. We’ll also see more fusion comfort food as cultures blend bao buns with fillings like pulled pork.
Playful Provisions
Shop-house store concepts are getting more creative, specialized, and downright fun. Look for oddly satisfying shops selling items like artisanal honey, rare houseplants, colorful socks, or even ice cream for dogs. Unique gift shops, quirky home décor stores, and “general stores” with appeal to kids are hot retail spaces in 2023’s shop-houses. Building owners are also mixing it up, perhaps having a juice bar downstairs and a portrait studio upstairs.
The Cozier, the Better
As people continue to work and play at home post-pandemic, our domestic spaces must be ultra-comfortable and design-forward. Shop-house living spaces reflect this in 2023 with warm textures like wood paneling and cozy furniture like overstuffed sofas paired with abstract art and sculptures. We’ll see more Persian rugs, velvet upholstery, and curated collections of antique decorative items. Rich colors like jewel tones in emerald and amethyst will replace dull neutral palettes. Ultimately, shop-houses must feel like boutique hotels to attract urban residents.
Shop-houses have always been a flexible concept adaptable to the times. In 2023, expect shop-houses to be sustainability-focused, comfort-centric, creatively curated, and oozing with hygge appeal in response to residents’ evolving needs. The shop-house renaissance will only continue as these spaces become beacons of charm and character in urban neighborhoods.
