The Rest Will Follow

It's a blustery day in the city... or not quite.  So my pieces that keep driving the idea conceptually are:

• my product: high fashion meets practical sophistication :: trench coats and attaches, etc.
• the cloudy day
• the street scape: specifically power lines, street lines, electrical towers, light poles

How do these products relate to one another?  Trench coats are symbolic for so many things.

They are iconic.  Think James Bond, Jackie O, Prince Charles, Carry Grant, Carrie Bradshaw.

They are sexy.  Think James Bond, Jackie O, Carry Grant, Carrie Bradshaw.

They are mysterious.  One one hand people wear them to make a statement.  And on the other people wear them to blend into the crowd.  They cover everything, and in a way have become a symbol for covering what's underneath.  They are a requirement for every good P.I.

They are also practical, they protect you from the elements.  Walk down the street on a blustery day in New York and everyone has one.  And what else are they all carrying? A breifcase- or today- a laptop case.  

So that's why I have chosen these two products to go together.  The same market that might purchase a trench coat, might also purchase a fine breifcase or designer pen.

And the idea is to have items for people to browse through and look at.  Also, the merchandise would change fairly frequently throughout the seasons so that there is a limited amount of product on display at one time.

The cloudy day seems to work so seemlessly with the product as well.  You can imagine a person, man or woman, rushing down the streets of downtown on a cold, blustery day on the way to a business meeting.  From the looks of it, Greensboro most certainly has a fashion-conscious business class and they like to look good - even on a rainy day, from head to toe, car to car keys.  It's about the details.

I want the store to reflect this type of atmosphere.  Kind of gritty city on an overcast day.  One thing I love about an overcast day is that the light is very diffuse.  That indirect light seems to help keep colors outside in intense saturation, and it's so beautiful.  I also like the idea of power lines and street lamps.  If you've ever tried to go out and take pictures of the suburban landscape, you're constantly trying to frame a view without powerlines in it.  In this case I want to celebrate the beauty of the banal and make it work to establish a mood.

The Revolution Mills is formerly very industrial.  I can see how this shop would fit well into the context by keeping exposed a lot of the existing materials and adding in new reused materials that speek about the streetscape.  A couple ideas for new, reused materials are steel- creating a few space dividers, or floor to ceiling fixtures inspired by the electrical tower. Very rectilinear, but also very formulaic and easily recognizable.  In a way the trench coat is the same way.  There are a million different variations, but they are all based on the same formula.

I have a distinct idea for thew way I want the lighting to feel.  I want to screen the natural lighting, which in my shop would be at the back of the store, or use it strategically to draw your eye to an otherwise concealed portion of the store - perhaps behind a screen or mesh.  Then I want to back light a single trench coat in a wall display.  Maybe there are a few iterations of this on one wall. I would propose to backlight it with very diffuse light that also would help to spill into the space and remove the need for overhead lighting.  Then, I would like to use embedded floor lights- like the ones you see on the outside of buildings, illuminating the facade, to create gently washed, hot spots on the front of the coat.  I want to uplight the structural metallic fixtures in the space as well as you often see electrical towers uplit.  

I want the thin, slightly sagging lines of the power line to be pervasive in the space.  I can see a wall system, made of taught line on which wooden or aluminum portfolio binders hang.  Perhaps there is a slightly canted (like a podium) style midfloor fixture that features five or six of these folios laying flat on the surface.  Maybe there are a set of thin elastic bands that the folios slip under.  It's an element that is both functional and aesthetic.

I also want to maximize my window display.  I like the idea of this being the place where on my large slanted wall I can create an interior environment for my manequins by employing the metal electrical tower-like structure that curves over them.  Spot lights like on a movie set - or maybe lamp posts or maybe a custom light fixture like one of those on the end of the long, overhanging lamp posts can spot light the product.  It could be really cool to have this be the one place where the light slighty flickers on and off like a street lamp, sporatically and barely imperceptible atleast to the shoppers outside so that they have to do a double take to see if the light really flickers on and off or not.  This might be a bit gimmicky.  It only works on the shopper once, but I think it could be interesting and add to the authenticity.

Much of my inspiration for the store in terms of lighting contrasts that maintain a high level of sophistication is the flagship store for the french label L'Eclaireur.  It however encorporates alot of warm tones in its design.  I would like use LED lighting, which gives off a cooler light than incandescant (sp?).  I think I will stray away from using the very blue looking LEDs and try to encorporate some of the newer LED technology which has been able to eliminate much of that blue essence.  Nevertheless, I do want to use dark greys and Payne's grays, hints of a midnight blue and white.  Much of my inspiration or color and texture will come from my photographs of the street and sky that I took.  I would also like to encorporate the photography into the graphics of the space, especially the images of the lamp posts and the sky- they are slighty ethereal and menacing.  

I don't want this space to feel harsh, subversive or frightening.  I want it to feel moody and somewhat edgy, like how you might feel on a cloudy day.  I always seek solitude on a cloudy day- it just brings the introvert out in me.  In a way, I think I can psychologically use this to my advantage and play up how the product, the trench and the attaches/folios are about expressing your inner self, your individuality, or maybe even your somewhat darker alter ego.  Just take a look at myspace and you'll get a glimpse into how popular the idea of the sexy, alter ego is. 

The main thing I struggle with is how this store will remain fresh throughout the seasons.  I need to be able to sell the product Spring, Summer, Winter, Fall.  I think I can accomplish this with music and by making the lighting and the colors of the panels behind the trench coat display (I can't help but imagine resin) to be able to change.  Maybe this is something I can do by using a colorless and cloudy resin and making it into a removable panel behind which I can put a color gel in front of the light or install a big, bold graphic on a huge transparency.

 

Precedents and The Like - WINESTORE

Winestore, Charlotte, North Carolina

"Bold Flavor," Inform Architecture and Design, 2007, No. 2, p18.

As their website says: "YOU'RE THE EXPERT ... Wine buying for the rest of us. It's not about stuffy wine reviews and knowing exactly what you want. Drink what you like. As long as you never use the term 'oaky,' you'll be just fine. "


I love the impossibly thin light tubes that illuminate the signage above the wine racks on the wall. There is such keen attention paid to the ceiling heights and creating spaces within spaces. In the front of the store there is a small area where the walling turns to ceiling and fixtures connect to floor and ceiling and create rotating wine racks that are larger than human scale.

The store in clean and cool, an ideal environment for wine. This could explain why there is no major attempt at creating ingenuitive window displays: sunlight and heat destroys wine. Instead the focus is on creating functional fixtures that show off the product and market it to a particular customer. The red wall appropriate for a wine store provides some visual heat and warmth to the space. An alcove of golden wood also achieves this aim.

This is an interesting case study in how to organize a product that is extremely diverse, but on the outside essential all looks the same. While an interesting label will attract the customer, the store helps establish an order that can bring the customer closer to their perfect match in a creative way.

The fixtures are easy enough to interact with - ring holders hold vertically placed bottles of wine next to cards with their descriptions on them. Sandwiched in the inside of the fixture is a wine rack that hold the extra stock.

Bright colors and industrial materials keep the store universal in its appeal to men and women. The interior is sparse in the way of furniture. There appears to be a bar for tasting- sans the barstool. Also a similarly constructed semicircular cash wrap sits in the back of the store where the salesperson has a clear view of the whole store while remaining out of the main path.

The store is really very minimal. There is not much of what I like to call the "linger factor." The shopping experience seems to focused on ease of selection so that the customer may chose their product, pay for it, and head home. Perhaps this is a perfect marketing strategy in and of itself. Make it easy for the customer to buy, especially after an exhausting work week (i'm assuming when most people stop by), thereby ensuring their return.

Winestore-online.com says that "We wanted to eliminate that fear and extend the favorable experience on the retail side. We have built our brand value on providing a positive experience for our customers above all else. Winestore is the result of that concept – a contemporary solution to the wine purchasing experience. All the aesthetic decisions for the identity were derived in order to distinguish Winestore from other wine shops by being innovative as well as approachable. Winestore is about celebrating the individuality of each brand of wine it sells, as well as the experience."

The store is super user-friendly employing touch screen kiosks, wine-tasting machines and signage that tells you the simple facts: RED, WHITE, even TAX REFUND.

The idea here is to not bombard the customer.

"Our goal is to provide a fun, educational and non-intimidating shopping experience for wine lovers of all levels of expertise" (http://www.winestore-online.com/store/)

Precedents and The Like - SINCERE FINE WATCHES

SINCERE FINE WATCHES, Sincere Haute Horology, Hilton Plaza, Singapore

Sincere Watch Academy

Singapore

Thailand

Taiwan

Singapore

Korea

Indonesia

Malaysia

India

It's no wonder why Sincere Haute Horlogerie at the Hilton Gallery in Singapore won Singapore Tourism's Best New Retail Concept. It is based on the concept "Only in Singapore."

"One distinct advantage Sincere Haute Horlogerie has over other watch boutiques is the luxury of space...For a lot of people, when you talk about luxury, space is a luxury. Our customers can enjoy the lounge environment. They can browse, it is like a meeting place for watch lovers." [Today Papers (March 30, 2007) ]

Sincere's Singapore store was to break the retail molds and provide a retail environment on par with any place store in New York, Hong Kong or Tokyo. I couldn't find much written on the interior design of the space, but the images really speak for themselves. There is alot of light play. The interior and exterior are so sculptural in form.

There is an admirably succesful blending of tradition and innovation here. The Sincere logo is chiseled, refined and timeless while the interior design speaks about the present, about the latest colors, product design, and architecture. It is luxurious and modern, yet curvaceous and sleekly comforting. Tones are warm oranges, earthy browns and ivory and in other places you see blue resin and metal framing and screening, yet both compliment the brand.

THE BRAND

The company states that it has built its reputation on these four strategic pillars:

• Brand Management
• Fine Watch Retailing
• Lifestyle Watch Retailing and
• Travel Watch Retailing

The company attributes its success to brand segmentation to fulfill the desires of its diverse clientelle: The Series Luxe, The Series Technics, and The Series Active.

Again, I appreciate how specifically they frame and describe their product.

"The Series Luxe features watches that reflect all of life’s luxuries. Gems and precious stones adorn these fabulous timepieces. Never failing to draw gasps of delight and awe
from onlookers, these watches are as much art as they are horological masterpieces. This magnificent collection belongs only to those who appreciate the finest things in life and who will go to great length to obtain them.

The Series Technics is targeted at the technologically-attuned segment that focuses on watches with great mechanical complications. The market for engineering intricacies is ever-growing, and the brands and models featured here border on the limits of man’s ability to create complicated timepieces of the finest quality.

The Series Active caters to those who are adventurous, sporty and who relish the pleasures of active recreations. These watches offer the best in presentation and performance while having the ability to sustain the rigors of every active lifestyle."

Interiors - Colors, Textures and Material Diversity

This space in incredible in its wide range of styles that come together seemlessly. Neoclassical furniture covered in velour and leather upholstery in dark, rich hues sit heavy and low against the expansive hardwood floor. The slight, yet minimal curves of the neoclassical reinterpretations pair well with the minimal, rectilinear solid wood furniture and shadow box-style display cases. The cases seem to float in randomized order, embedded in a mesh wall that keeps the eye dancing between the interior of the room and that which lies beyond and out of focus. Another wall is a screen and display wall entirely composed of the shadow box frames stacked upon one another and resting on a heavy base that doubles as cabinet storage. A few of the shadow boxes are backed and lined in red like jewelcases. Individual items are spotlighted this way.

One thing you'll notice about all of the retail spaces is that there is very minimal ceiling lights. This way the display cases are the most brightly lit. The atmosphere is dark, dramatic and sexy.

Long jewel cases double as bars, literally for special events - a key to creating a party atmosphere and draw a crowd to the store - host a soiree. There is comfortable seating where the customer can pull up a seat and talk with a representative and make well-considered decision. The company caters to the shopper looking for the full-service luxury shopping experience, and the purchase is much more like a finalized business transaction rather than an impulse buy. This sets up an arrangement familiar to many of the clients, some of the world's most famous celebrities and business moguls.

Read More About the Company -----> Sincere Fine Watches

Precedents and The Like - REI

"The Great Indoors", Interior Sources, Sept 2008, Vol 17 No. 7
A Photo Essay about Gensler's unique design for an REI retail store

Gensler's took the opportunity in it's interior design of the new Boulder, Co REI store to reflect the company's commitment to sustainability and love for nature - inspiring customers to outfit their next great adventure. I really like this case study because the images of the interiors actually illustrate how a concept can guide the layout of a retail space. The photograph with the midfloor fixtures features a prime example. The fixtures are all substantially sized, typically two-sided so products can be displayed on both the front and the back, encouraging people to walk around them. If you look at the path created by the floor fixtures it is much like that of a nature trail, gently winding about a fixed obstacle like a large tree or boulder. In the same way, customers can slow down, wind about the store and look more intently at the product, browse through the racks, and really be immersed in the store.

Here the "linger factor" is key. There are level changes and natural lighting and information areas - an abundance of information to help educate as well as inspire. The graphics in the space are used wisely. Large black and white panaoramic photos are broken into panels and placed in the clothing areas where the compartmentalized overhead shelving would be - drawing the eye upward to the items in those shelves as well as creating inspiring vistas.

Unlike the Sincere retail locations, daylighting here is necessary to the whole atmosphere of the store.  Light wells and skylights bring in daylighting at the same time as cutting down on energy consumption and photovoltaic capture solar power for reuse.

There is a whole forest of two-dimensional trees that surround you, serving as screens between rooms, wall art, and sculptural doors and entryways.  An abtsracted motif appears in patinaed steel - a warm, earthy color.  Those same trees occur in three dimensions as background or context in the manequin stands. In another place, more photo-realistic trees are etched into the glass. In the front entrance two mamoth abstract "tree trunks" span from floor to ceiling, far overhead.  They are impressive and beautiful and make a statement about what is about to come as soon as you enter the store.

As far as I can tell, there isn't any color on the walls. None.  Yet the place is vibrant with pattern and texture, and the fixtures themselves are honey-colored woods and the product creates an overall color scheme- or atleast a rainbow of options.  Product is grouped presumably according to male, female, function, style, and then color, and size.  This creates a natural order yet a few small signs built into the cases might provide more info, but they are minimal at best. 

Precedents and The Like - SWATCH

The Swatch store in times Square is just an over the top example of some very effective branding.  The store is wrapped in literally wrapped in images.  I chose this store because I've actually been there.  It's very pop.  I think that could be the design concept in a nutshell.  Products pop in the displays, graphics pop off of walls, colors and light pop from the inside to the outside.

The windows are also used very effectively; cases in the interior are encased in bright colors that draw your attention fromthe outside.

It's very urban and international in its feel.  The people in the ads are young hipsters, well dressed and - in their latest ads- actually in flight.  The whole facade soars to the sky and manages to compete fairly well with the other eye popping billboards around it.

From the Moodie Report on Swatch ---> Read More
Swatch + Art
Right from the start, Swatch connected with contemporary art. Swatch watches were inspired by popular culture, and Swatch itself soon became a canvas for famous artists, musicians and fashion designers. One of the first major artists to collaborate with Swatch was the Keith Haring, and the relationship between Swatch and art has since produced a fascinating series of Swatch Art Specials by Pedro Almodóvar, Ágatha Ruíz de la Prada, Jean-Charles de Castelbajac and Vivienne Westwood, among many others. Recent collaborators include the performance artists and musicians known as Blue Man Group, and Norma Jeane, the contemporary artist who designed Once Again, Again, the 2008 “Club Watch” for members of the worldwide community of Swatch fans and collectors known as Swatch The Club.

Creative retail
Swatch The Club has evolved from a club for enthusiasts and collectors of Swatch watches to a worldwide community. Today, with more than 12,000 Swatch POS, creative retail is the name of the game. In addition to existing shop-in-shops, kiosks, monobrand Swatch stores and flagship Swatch Jellyfish stores, Swatch now sets up “Instant Stores” — temporary Swatch stores that can be set up quickly at an event or in a trendy new location. A new look in retail outlets is coming soon – a theatrical display of creative mobility designed to turn Swatch stores into stages for the product as protagonist.

Precedents and The Like - L'Eclaireur

L'ecalireur, Le Marias, Rue Mahler, Paris

Very French and Very Experiemental.

I love this designer, the store and the brand. It's cool and eclectic. There's a bit of the Romantic ideal of the globe-trotting, treasure-hunting Indiana Jonesesque lifestyle in the artifacts that are positioned throughout the store. It's dark, mysterious and sexy - again, very French. We get a glimpse of where Anthropologie might have gotten their french-vintage-cabinet-of-curiosities-aesthetic.

The tones in many of hte spaces are warm. There's an ample use of leather and animal skins, glass, steel, and stone. The space relies heavily on monumental architectural details drawn directly from the Parisian cityscape. Skylights in a central room create a cool contrast to the surrounding rooms and draw the eye toward the center of the room. This room has a distinctly different feel and is pared down to shelving, manequins, mid-floor displays where clothes lie stacked ona flat surface. There is one long hanging rack and a modern shelving unit made of reclaimed wood. The room is largely a passageway from one wing of the store to the other so the center of the room is kept as a wide-open aisle. Again, the lighting in this room serves as a good model for how to work with artificial and natural light together in one space. Track lights cut through the natural light flooding through the skylight and still cast hot spots on hanging garments. This, along with the inclusion of a large spot light on a tripod give this room the impression of a movie set.




A video tour around L'Eclaireur, Paris