New shape from Kaniewski

Three years of cooperation and a national debut in December 2011 - the first Meeting Point Stop Café in Poland, a new concept from the fuel giant designed by Kaniewski Haute Design. "I had a lot of work in Gdańsk once, somewhere near ul. Grunwaldzka. There was nowhere nearby that I liked to go for coffee or a chat, so I decided to open one myself," is Janusz Kaniewski's jocular account of how this came about. However, the president of PKN Orlen provides us with his own version of events: "We adopted a strategy for the consistent development of our non-fuel offer, turning our petrol stations into something more than just places where you can buy fuel. The café in Gdańsk is the fruit of this strategy," explains Jacek Krawiec.

Inspired by movement
The choice of Janusz Kaniewski and his team as designers was no accident. "We clearly shared a passion for motoring," says the designer. Despite this common interest, the enterprise is a challenge for him for a number of reasons. Kaniewski is a well-known name in the world of industrial design. His achievements include: the current red logo of Fiat, the designs of the latest models of Lancia Delta and Ferrari California cars, cooperation with Honda, Suzuki and Mazda, and projects for the famous Italian design studio Pininfarina. The difference is that the Gdańsk projects, i.e. the adaptation of existing petrol stations, are architectural challenges - the first to be taken on by the designer. "The designer's work is that of an introvert. And this was the first design drawn up in cooperation with such a big team," emphasises Janusz Kaniewski. "Just as in the case of industrial design, an architectural facility must be a source of pleasure. Design for me is a form of art, but we must not forget about functionality. I am personally fed up with the fact that many people consider design to be a mere obsession with gadgets," explains Janusz Kaniewski.

100 pct Polishness
What was the approach taken towards the work on the design? The team wanted to create a place that, despite its function, would be regarded more as a meeting point than as a place to do with motoring. The main inspiration for the designers was - and this will probably come as no surprise - the car and the automotive industry. "We were wondering how to integrate the sex appeal of cars into the design," recalls Janusz Kaniewski. The answer they came up with is best seen in the evenings. A huge neon light installed on a glass pavilion suggests the headlights of a car, while the appearance of the façade resembles the carbon fibre pattern used on racing cars. Inside there is no shortage of materials associated with the manufacture of cars, such as ecological leather with characteristic backstitching. Another aspect of the design is the modernity of the building, such as the fact that the petrol station is powered by alternative energy sources. "I like the fact that we could act independently. We are ultimately delivering a product which is 100 pct Polish - and I would like to put a particular emphasis on that. Polish design - of trams, yachts, etc. - is world-class, but still we continue to be afraid to admit that we make good quality things," stresses the designer.
The opening of the petrol station in Gdańsk is now part of history. Now Janusz Kaniewski and his team are working on another project for the fuel giant. Its flagship petrol station is to be located near PKN Orlen's head office in the Senator building on al. Solidarności in Warsaw. Has the designer's foray into architecture only just begun?