Good vibrations fill the air along Coney Island’s beach and bustling Riegelmann Boardwalk. In New York’s coastal neighborhood, new Health Choice Pharmacy, located on Surf Avenue, adds to the buzz. Multidiscipline design firm Sergio Mannino Studio led the pharmacy’s transformation by creating an atmosphere with focus on people’s emotions rather than copying and pasting typical sterile pharmacy design.
Health Choice Pharmacy opened its doors to the public in June 2026. Cool colors and simple geometries fill the 2,471-square-foot space. Sergio Mannino Studio reexamined the pharmacy aisle to help create the sense of openness. With 22-foot ceilings, the space is fitted with custom slim metal frames, coated in a seaform blue, to pull off what the Italians call “librerie svedesi” or to “Swedish bookcases.” The lighweight, modular infrastructure blends Franco Albini’s bookcases with Swedish midcentury sensibilities. The shelving system not only creates clear, spacious navigation for customers, but it also offers added security for the pharmacists as they can view the entire store without solely relying on the security cameras.
The blue library-esque shelves found in the center of the pharmacy are met with a soft speckled floor, Tilebar’s Kobe Flakes Ocean Blue Porcelain, which nods to the nearby beach. While walking through the space, the wall shelving, clad in Pfleiderer’s Horizon Blue and Chartreuse Green Laminate, subtly pops against the walls of robin’s egg blue. Although each color is individually bold, together they create a calming, bright space.
The design also considers the customers’ desire for privacy. The consultation space is blocked off by ribbed glass, allowing light to seep in while also offering seclusion. Emil Khalilov, owner of Health Choice Pharmacy, said in a statement, “This new location brings neighborhood convenience with clarity. The design helps our team service efficiently while giving customers a calm, confident experience.”
Amongst the strong blue color language found in the pharmacy, the pharmacy incorporates quiet neutral tones via natural oak laminate by EGGER to the counters, moulding, and door frames. The wood can also be found for a few of the shelves behind the counter, creating a warm gridded contrast.
If Louis Sullivan’s mantra was “form follows function,” Sergio Mannino Studio’s ideology for the pharmacy is “form follows emotions.” Sergio Mannino, founder of the eponymous studio shared, “Health Choice Pharmacy is designed around emotions. Shapes, materials, colors, and light come together to create a clear, calm, and reassuring sensory experience.”
