British fashion house JW Anderson prepares to open up a flagship store location in Milan with the help of British design studio 6a Architects. It is inspired by local themes, specifically Soho sex shops -- the store is found in the city's Quadrilatero shopping district and takes place over a single floor, and is made up of two rooms.
Anderson speaks about the new space to Dezeen, stating "I thought [6a Architects] really grasped how to take my visual language and turn it into something which was able to be educational [...] The store actually is a combination of Disobedient Bodies and a store. It's a little bit more elevated," he said. "The front of the building feels Soho, and as you go in, it feels more kind of domestic Milanese."
Image Credit: 6a Architects
What's Driving This Trend
- Local Inspiration
- Designers are drawing inspiration from local and unconventional themes to create flagship store window designs that stand out from traditional retail displays.
- Single Floor Store Layouts
- As retailers look to minimize overhead costs, single floor store layouts are becoming increasingly popular, providing an opportunity for innovative spatial design and customer experience.
- Combined Retail Spaces
- Combining retail spaces with other experiences, such as educational exhibits, adds value and a unique experience to the traditional shopping experience.
Who This Affects Most
- Fashion Retail
- Fashion retailers are taking inspiration from unconventional sources and implementing unique store layouts to create a memorable and immersive shopping experience for consumers.
- Architectural Design
- Architectural design firms have an opportunity to create disruptive and unconventional retail spaces that draw inspiration from local themes and provide a unique shopping experience.
- Experiential Retail
- By combining retail spaces with educational exhibits or other experiences, the experiential retail industry has the potential to disrupt traditional retail and create a more engaging and memorable shopping experience.
