Stores we love – March 2014

London again proves its weight in retail gold with two luxury fashion houses and a pop-up, alongside Kenzo’s seamless pop-up in Paris, Aesop’s Brooklyn installation and Tokyo’s Seibu Department Store. Take a look at our final pick…

Kenzo – Paris, France

Kenzo’s collaboration with The Blue Marine Foundation continues with the opening of the ‘NoFishNoNothing’ digital pop-up store in Paris. Running for one week in March (20-27), visitors were able to browse and purchase special collectors’ items via a touchscreen linked to the Kenzo e-store. Once a purchase was complete, a digital fish would be generated and added to the store’s giant digital aquarium.

Seek No Further – London, UK, and Berlin, Germany

Sportswear manufacturer Fruit of the Loom is celebrating the launch of its new label ‘Seek No Further’, with two simultaneous pop-ups in Shoreditch, London, and Mitte, Berlin. The stores’ key message is to channel simplicity with the use of materials such as glass wax, flock coating, coast concrete and silicone to emphasise the innovative processes behind garment manufacture.

Saint Laurent – London, UK

London’s Sloane Street has recently seen the arrival of French fashion powerhouse, Saint Laurent. Similar to the flagship in Paris, Saint Laurent’s London store features an art deco interior that champions simplicity and quality materials through the use of marble, mirrors and a monotone palette.

Aesop Pop-up Installation – Brooklyn, USA

Mexican architect Frida Escobedo has created an installation for Aesop’s latest pop-up at The Invisible Dog Art Centre in Brooklyn, New York. Layers of sand have been poured into a simple wooden structure and gradually sift through the bottom of the glass panel to morph into shapes resembling a mountainous landscape of peaks and valleys.

Céline – London, UK

Céline’s new London premises has just opened on Mount Street. Oozing sophistication and luxe design, the new store reflects Celine’s minimal brand aesthetics. Striking geometric, backlit ceiling panels and a marble floor, inlaid with semi-precious stones, set the scene for the brand’s full range of apparel, shoes and trophy bags. Well worth a visit.