Aesop's second Barcelona location, on Avinguda Diagonal, was designed by mesura around a single material sourced entirely from the city itself. Montjuïc stone, a sandstone quarried locally and used extensively in 19th-century Barcelona construction, became the central element of the store. The brief asked for a space that was social, timeless, and local, with a genuine commitment to sustainability. Using salvaged stone from demolished buildings met all 4 criteria at once.

The sourcing process was the first design challenge. The team initially attempted to acquire stone from the Sagrada Familia but shifted focus when they discovered the Barbany family, a stonemason dynasty with a 130-year practice who had preserved fragments of 19th-century Barcelona buildings at their workshop. The pieces included remnants of Gothic quarter structures, old fountains, archways, and pedestals. One visit to the Barbany workshop confirmed the material and the collaboration.

78 stones were selected and catalogued before the design was finalized. The assembly sequence had to be determined in advance: the design team built a physical mock-up at the Barbany workshop, numbering each stone and testing configurations over 3 weeks before the pieces were palletized for transport to the Diagonal site. The confined space of the store made precise sequencing essential. The method was named Creative Anastylosis, a term borrowed from the Greek practice of reconstructing ancient monuments from their fragmented parts, where available material determines the outcome rather than the other way around.

The stone is concentrated around the sinks, where customers interact directly with Aesop's products. The rest of the store holds back: textured stucco walls, a refined floor finish, and a stucco ceiling create a neutral ground that lets the stone ensemble and the product take the foreground. Stainless steel elements provide functional support without competing with the stone's density and weight.