They're calling it the “restaurant banking experience” and the first concept in Western Tuscany, Italy, takes its cues from the region’s strong focus on food.

ChiantiBanca is a credit union and bank that is unique to the Chianti region in North West Italy. Their recent facelift has been a holistic one with the design teams at DINN! and Crea International looking to shake up the traditional approach to the retail experience in banking.

“Starting from the idea to consolidate the existing relationships, the new service design gives life to an environment that recalls the inns of Chianti,” explains the team from DINN!

Endeavoring to blend some of the rich hospitality traditions from the region with a more relaxed and appealing customer experience, the food industry became an obvious model for exploration.

Expressions of Chianti shine through in the selection of materials and colours; natural and sustainable materials, such as wood and Corten^® are offset by gentle walnut and muted green hues.

Soft lighting is employed considerately to enhance the flagstone-paved floors, a nod to the region’s rambling historic roads and pavements.

A variety of engagement zones, high seating and low, brings the staff out from behind counters and encourages a greater sense of interaction and collaboration between customers and employees.

The transition to a greater technological interface with the public has seen the removal of over the counter withdrawals, consumers in the semi-rural province being introduced to new ATM facilities in line with an overarching brand relaunch.

DINN!

dinndesign.com

(Images © Dario Garofalo)