PAL Design Group took ‘online living’ as their major inspiration for the Yongjia Sales Centre, designing four show flats for UNStudio’s vertical living pods in Wenzhou, China. Lead designer Joey Ho (Design Partner at PAL) used modernist curves and a neutral colour palette to appeal to young millennial families living in the information age. “Our design focus is minimalism while the promise of comfort is simply essential. The whole idea is about bringing design to the purest of our new ‘online’ living situations,” says the PAL team.

The project’s single-floor and duplex compact living pods feature open-plan kitchen and living areas and one or two bedrooms. The apartments are ‘plugged in’ with laundry services, storage and food delivery accessible via mobile applications. In their show flats, PAL makes the most of the limited space; the loft is just 86 square metres. The furniture and fittings are kept simple and the colour palette is predominantly white and black to keep the small spaces clean, bright and airy.

Slender light fittings are secreted in the flat’s sweeping modernist curves. The furniture is in soft fabrics contrasted with metal frames. Cabinets and countertops have rounded edges. Different areas of the space – living, kitchen, bedroom ­– are denoted with a change in flooring. In the duplex, light and privacy are cleverly balanced with a large glass partition overlooking the living room below. PAL says their pure design style was to get “back to what home is ultimately about, to sleep sound and begin a day with a smile.”

For UNStudio the shared public spaces are a “permeable open system of spaces that allows for the social concept to flow through a building, encouraging interaction and communication.” With this in mind, PAL, designed an airy sales hall to welcome guests. Like the show flats, the space is stripped bare of unnecessary decoration, but invites guests with slender dramatic curves and a white, brightly lit colour palette. PAL’s favorite aspect is the streamlined spiral staircase with polished steps. “We love the meandering effect of the staircase. It prepares guests to witness first-hand stimulating ideas for contemporary living,” says PAL.