Street Style

Splashy murals, social sharing opps cater to sneaker-obsessed

ABC-MART GRAND STAGE | Gangnam District, Seoul; Ginza, Tokyo; and Harajuku, Tokyo
completed August 2018 | size 5,500 sf | photos Masayuki Saito
 
Contributing Shop! member: 
CallisonRTKL design/architecture

Capitalizing on the meteoric rise in sneakers and streetwear, this flagship location for ABC-MART’s Grand Stage brand provides a one-of-a-kind experience that’s hyper-focused on appealing to its street-style- and culture-driven target market. Created with flexibility at the forefront, Grand Stage’s dynamic new design can physically evolve as quickly as the changing styles of its target consumer. The flagship is laid out into three distinctive experiences: Center Stage, Feature Walls, and Back Stage. The experience begins digitally, led by a robust mobile app that connects consumers with store staff and each other, with support from relevant in-store technology.

Each floor in-store leads with a main focal point, Center Stage, a platform for showcasing a variety of brands, lifestyle inspiration, and innovative products. The store’s Feature Walls, which line the perimeter, are separated according to brand, making it easy for customers to see breadth in-store and depth online.

Back Stage, digital lockers allow customers to pick up items purchased online in the BOPIS area. In the Kick Pics Booth with mirrored ceiling and localized graphics, customers can try on shoes, and snap and share photos of the shoes on social media. Fitting rooms, also located within Back Stage, allow customers to “try it on and show it off” on social media and provide access to peer-to-peer services.

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The clarity and ease of navigation of the store’s design fuel focus and innovative storytelling moments, inspiring authentic connection to the brands represented in the store. Products are organized according to brand, with extra SKUs moved to the back of the house.

Lighted glass panels around Center Stage draw the eye to a featured brand’s edited product selection. White-wood pegboard panels offer easy product reorganization, while muted, white-wood floor fixtures let products take center stage. Natural wood planks highlight the Back Stage areas and make it easy for customers to find the click-and-collect space and fitting rooms.

Murals by local artists grab attention throughout the store, creating vibrancy and ties to the local culture and community. Flexible furnishings and fixtures enable easy space reorganization to accommodate product launches and in-store events.

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Technology throughout the store adds visual interest and appeals to the sneaker- and street-culture-obsessed target market. Digital and graphic panels draw customers in, help them find the right products, and present information about those products in an easy-to-use manner.

By placing a shoe in front of an RFID panel, customers can get info such as innovation, design, additional colors, sizing, in-stock inventory, and smart suggestions. Digital screens display compelling graphics related to the current Center Stage initiative, product innovations, or other relevant content. And touching a digital screen provides access to an endless aisle via the ABC-MART app or website, as well as editorial content. Additional features of the screen include in-stock inventory information and, in the case of interactive mirrors, smart suggestions.

Technology appeals to the sneaker- and street-culture-obsessed target market.

In-store technology also extends the brand’s reach beyond the physical location. The store’s Kick Pics Booth facilitates customer-driven moments of storytelling: Customers enter the Kick Pics Booth, touch the screen and, after a countdown, three cameras capture overhead, head-to-toe, and shoe-eye views. Customers are then able to select a preferred crop and backdrop, then share on social media and the ABC-MART app. 

Another highlight in-store, the Click + Collect lockers allow customers to select items to try on or purchase the next time they visit the store. Once they have made their order, the customer receives a digital key code that will permit them to retrieve their products from their assigned locker. If needed, the customer can try on their items in the nearby fitting rooms and seamlessly return anything that doesn’t fit. 

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