Archive 2020
Xiangxiang Luo
China
From old to new, to future: FREITAG's concept store
Dissertation title
How the retail should communicate brand value and improve user experience in the context of the rapid development of online shopping.
How can we improve the physical brand space in the context of the rapidly changing retail environment by exploring and combining the advancements of the online experience with the sensorial and theatrical elements of the offline?
Swiss brand FREITAG has 26 global stores with over 4000 unique products, ranging not only their signature bags but accessories and apparel. With so many products on offer, the future concept store looks to explore a narrative rich environment which exemplifies the brand story of Freitag whilst challenging the function or purpose of why a physical space is relevant in our current economy.
The design concept is about time; old and new, past and future. Each of FREITAG’s unique bags is made from recycled truck tarp, and every piece of their clothing can degrade in the soil over time, they waste nothing but time. To represent the spirit of the brand, we will not only let guests experience what FREITAG has now; unique materials, handmade process and a wide variety of products but also display FREITAG’s future social role as a sustainable and innovative brand.
Using the Old Sorting Office in Chelsea as a UK flagship location, the store acts as the pilot space for which the following 26 global stores will assimilate over time. The location as an ex industrial site adheres to the aesthetic of the brand whilst simultaneously speaking to the subtle reference of export and delivery, core to the original truck tarp material on which the company was founded.
Installing experience rich moments into the store to promote customer engagement and connectivity, customers no longer act as observers rather become active participants and students in the story of the brand. The store categories these moments into ‘Future Spaces’; Future Transport, Future Fabric Lab, Future Communication and Future Cafe, conveying not only FREITAG’s recycling philosophy but also embodying the brands innovative spirit of continually exploring the unknown.
Keywords: Retail, Brand, Fashion, Futuristic, Interactive, Experience
Mediums: 3d rendering, orthgonal drawing, axonometric drawing, GIF, video
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