MAC Cosmetics Debuts ‘Musical Spaceship’ Concept For Nanjing Flagship

MAC Cosmetics has unveiled a new retail concept in China that turns the store interior into a deconstructed piano.

Located at Deji Plaza, a top-grossing luxury shopping mall in Nanjing, the flagship brings together music, beauty and modern art and is meant to “celebrate the brand’s artistry-first ethos in a whole new way,” MAC said in a statement.

Spanning about 1,200 square feet, the store includes a centerpiece piano that doubles as a product display. Its signature lipsticks become the keys for sharps and flats, eyeshadow palettes echo tuning knobs, and above the piano, the ceiling evokes the expanded interior of a stringed instrument.

The store also features an AR-powered virtual try-on area, a makeup studio for artist-led applications and events, and a dedicated customization area.

For Aïda Moudachirou-Rébois, senior vice president and global general manager at MAC Cosmetics, the flagship design celebrates “the Chinese consumer — one of the most expressive, sophisticated, and creatively engaged beauty communities in the world.”

Isabelle Gao, general manager of MAC in China, added that dramatic interiors coupled with its wide range of products are meant to “open the realm of discovery through the five senses.” She characterized the “musical spaceship” as “a mechanical interpretation of the brand’s manifesto — beauty should flow as freely as music.”

Li Xiang of X+Living, a Shanghai-based architecture design firm known for crafting dreamlike interiors, was tasked with designing the Deji flagship.

“When we stripped away the piano’s shell, what we found was rhythm, structure, and soul—and that felt like MAC,” said Li Xiang. “We used the visual language of music to express the emotional power of makeup. Lipstick is the metaphoric chord to one’s life. Without chords, life lacks rhythm.”

Li, whose breakout project includes the kaleidoscopic Zhongshuge bookstore in Shenzhen, China, and the viral luxury washroom at Deji Plaza, said the project helps create a “strong visual association with the products,” namely MAC’s classic Bullet Lipstick.

“When pressing the keys arranged by the bullet lipstick, it will trigger the sound system, arousing the viewer’s curiosity,” said Li. “I hope the design is not only sensory but also behavioral and interactive. When people touch the product, the space responds, and the brand springs to life.”

MAC, which entered the Chinese market in 2005, now counts over 30 freestanding stores and employs 500 makeup artists across the country.