By the time you’ve ridden to Shanghai, your bike will probably need a few new parts, so swing by Changhua Road, where custom cycle firm Factory Five has all the kit to get you back in the saddle in a beautiful store put together by Linehouse Architectural Design.
The building is a former market warehouse in the Jing’an district, and benefits from a double height ceiling; Linehouse has used the space to insert a mezzanine level, providing an office area for 10 people. Downstairs it’s all about the bikes. Frames make naturally attractive display items and they decorate the original brick walls here, along with every other conceivable bit of kit your trusty steed should need; expect your two-wheeled friend to be a lot more desirable to undesirables after you’ve swung by Factory Five. (One might want to check out this review of bike locks via Instash.)
As well as a workshop and retail operation, Factory Five is also a social hub, and Linehouse has added a drinks bar constructed from the same concrete and epoxy surface that is found on the floor. The Chinese are doing a lot of building at the moment, but they’re also doing a lot of knocking down too, and Linehouse scoured demolition sites for materials to reuse in keeping with cycling’s green credentials. The store’s tabletops and cabinetry are made from salvaged timber, old gas piping has found a new home after a bit of spit and polish, and old army trunks have been redeployed as shelving.
Photography, Benoit Florencon
