Ununplan — Baicai Design

Ununplan

UNUNPLAN is a coffee space located in Wuxi. The brand name, formed through the double negative un-un-plan, conveys the idea that "no plan is the best plan." It reflects a spirit of intentional rebellion—a lifestyle that seeks to break free from routine.

Project Info:

Status: built, 2025
Area: 78 sqm
Client: Ununplan
Location: Wuxi
Photography: Topia Vision

Coffee is more than a drink—it's a statement. We believe life should be the same: spontaneous, unrestrained, and ready to depart. That's why we shaped the design around the concept of immediate departure.

Departure exists in the fleeting moment between preparation and journey, a point charged with emotion and uncertainty. We translated this unfinished temporality into a visual language of "being packed." Every element in the space—counters, tables, chairs, displays, even lighting—is tightly bound with orange rope, like luggage waiting to be loaded and whisked away.

We avoided traditional renovation. The space is kept clean and white, open and unadorned. Everything is built from modular wooden components, dismountable structures, and furniture wrapped in a sense of "being packed", together creating a light, temporary, and flexible atmosphere.

All furnitures are made from raw wood boards of varying sizes, echoing a natural, rugged texture that hints at the idea of "the distant." Refined details—metal edges and custom rope grooves—bring precision to the roughness. These seemingly simple elements are grounded in deep consideration of proportion, rhythm, and structure. It may look like a spontaneous adventure, but every part holds up to close scrutiny.

UNUNPLAN's branding color is orange. Rather than using it broadly, we introduce it subtly, in the corners of furniture, rope knots, and structural joints. These touches echo the orange toned wood throughout the space, maintaining a sense of restraint while quietly suggesting readiness and momentum.

UNUNPLAN isn't a space built for efficiency or precision. It feels more like a pause mid-journey—unfinished, temporary, yet grounded in real life. We hope everyone who steps in can begin their own undefined path from here.

About

Baicai Design is a multidisciplinary design practice based in New York and Shenyang, working across architecture, interiors, exhibitions, and spatial design. Its practice spans different geographies, scales, and cultural contexts.

Founded by Kaiwen Zhao, Baicai is shaped by his interdisciplinary background in design and architecture. Zhao studied Industrial Design at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) and Architecture at the Yale School of Architecture. He currently teaches in the Department of Industrial Design at RISD, and has previously taught at the University of Colorado Denver, lectured at NYU Tisch School of the Arts, and served as a guest critic at Syracuse University.

Baicai approaches space beyond the conventional boundaries of interior design, bringing together architectural and product design thinking to address spatial questions. Through different scales of intervention, we explore the relationships between space, objects, and human behavior.

New York:
540 Fulton St, Brooklyn, NY, 11201

Shenyang:
A07International Software Park, Shenyang, China

baicaidesignoffice@gmail.com

Awards

FRAME Wellness Space of the year Shortlisted
2026

Paris Design Awards Winner
2026

MUSE Design Awards Gold Winner
2026

Dezeen China Rising Firm of the Year
2025

POSITION Award China Best 100 Young Architect
2024

Guangzhou Design Week 40 Under 40
2024

AD China 100 YOUNG
2022-2024

Architizer Best Young Interior Design Firm Special Mention
2024

Forbes China 30 Under 30
2023

FRAME Small Residential of the year Shortlisted
2023

FRAME Award Best Emerging Designer Nominee
2023

APIDA Design Award Excellence Award
2023

FRAME Pop-up Store of the Year
2022

FRAME Window Display of the Year Shortlisted
2022

WYDF TOP 100 Designer
2022

Dezeen Award Shortlisted
2022

Architecture Masterprize Best of The Bests
2022

AD China 100 YOUNG
2020-2022

Architecture Masterprize Honorable Mention
2022

KUKAN Design Award Shortlisted
2022

DNA Award Winner in Workplace Design
2022

DNA Award Honorable Mention in Workplace Design
2022

DNA Award Honorable Mention in Showroom Design
2022

K-Design Award Winner
2022

Novum Design Award Gold Award
2022

Novum Design Award Silver Award
2022

IDA Design Award Honorable Mention
2022

FRAME Best of the Month
2022 April

Design for Asia Award Bronx Award
2021

Design for Asia Award Excellence Award
2021

IDEA Design Award Finalist
2021

Golden Pin Design Award Winner
2021

Golden Pin Design Award Honorable Mention
2022

Press

Baicai Design’s work has received international media coverage across architecture, design, fashion, and culture. The studio has been featured in publications including Gestalten, INTERIORS, AD China, FRAME, Interior Design China, My Home, and id+c, alongside leading global platforms such as Dezeen, Leibal, Architizer, Divisare, Vogue, ELLE China, Yatzer, Cosmopolitan, gooood, Archilovers, Designverse, and Archello.