Chinese store Nova Pets encourages owners

A new grooming salon concept in China called Nova Pets allows customers to chill with their pets in a retail space.

Located in Hangzhou, Nova Pets features a sunken cafe, playground and a swimming pool for pets.

“The project started with an idea of creating a new type of pet store, a place where people could really socialise with their pets,” said a spokesperson for the designers Say Architects.

Using yellow, black and gray as project’s themed colors, one of the founders Yan Zhang explained “Those are the main colours that dogs can see in their daily doggy life.”

Nova Pets occupies a 450sqm area, half of which is dedicated to a cafe and a pet playground with the other half used for a grooming salon.

The playground for pets is adjacent to the store’s entrance. A cafe is located on the upper floor, featuring two curved, hollow “valleys” where customers can sit and enjoy drinks, at the same time, watch their pets running around the playground.

Say Architects also design a small tunnel with windows for animals to travel between the sunken seating areas.

In case customers are away or use the restroom, their pets will be taken care of at Nova Pets’ “hotel”.

The store also features instagrammable spots for photoshoots and a paddling pool for four-legged visitors.

Say Architects described a concrete column, which lies at the centre of the floor plan, as a nova. This is also where the salon chooses its name.

“We imagine this column to be the origin of the whole room,” explained the practice.