On April 16, 2021, Ningbo Hankyu opened in Ningbo City, Zhejiang Province (population: 8.5 million). GARDE was in charge of the local interior and architectural facade design. Ningbo Hankyu is a joint venture between Hankyu Department Store and China's Shanshan Group. It has seven floors, six above ground and one below, with a total commercial area of 176,000 square meters. Its most significant selling point is the luxury brand sales floor on the first floor. Taking advantage of the Hankyu Hanshin Department Store network, famous luxury brands such as Louis Vuitton, Dior, Celine, Gucci, and Saint Laurent opens their stores.

The operator, Ningbo Hankyu Hanshin Commercial Limited Company, has received an investment of 11 billion yen from the Cool Japan Organization, which the Japanese government has been promoting to attract overseas demand for Japanese attractions. As a result, Japanese contents such as food and fashion are positioned as essential pillars, and 70 stores, or about 20%, are Japanese brands.

The relationship between GARDE and Hankyu Department Store began with the rebuilding project of the Hankyu Umeda flagship store. GARDE has worked with Hankyu Department Store to create a store design that conveyed the department store's unique character and developed an image that brought the department store's thoughts to customers. "As the first experiential department mall in China that combines the strengths of a department store with the strengths of a shopping center", we used our accumulated expertise in the department store business and spatial design to create a new commercial design. The giant wooden dome with a diameter of 28 meters, which will be the mall's centerpiece, is a modern design based on ideas from the traditional Japanese architectural woodwork technique .