One of the first specialty shops established in Shanghai after China’s reforms and opening in the 1980s, Hua Bao Lou grew to become one of the city’s largest destinations for crafts and antiques, with a diverse mid- to high-end stock that also included jewellery, paintings and calligraphy. Known for its unique retromodern style, the shop closed for renovation in 2020, with Pico appointed to provide prop production and installation and other services for phase one of the project. Reopened in December 2021, the renovated Hua Bao Lou interior recreates the eclectic traditional-modern charm of the original – very much in keeping with the Ming and Qing dynasty cues of the building’s exterior.