Following on from the success of the three other new concept stores, Glassons were keen to make a clear statement with a strong thematic design on New Zealand’s premium fashion street.
At over 500m², this was the brands biggest store so far. Its flagship store needed to be a fun and inviting experience to their all-range-age customer base and still provide a neutral, yet warm and inviting backdrop to the rapidly changing apparel menu selection. Fittings and finishes were required to withstand the heavy demands of busy retail use.
We wanted to create a fun, whimsical and unashamedly ‘Girly’ store, which unveils each space in the shop like a story in a picture book. The theme ‘Rooms of the Mansion’ was chosen to inspire a variety of spaces based on a grand house including, among others, an atrium, portico, library, styling room and dressing room. The theme transports the shopper to a magical place with candy stripe pink ceilings, a floral feature wall, bright green buttonhole ottomans and cut crystal doorknobs and many other unexpected decorative features.
The front window is literally ‘framed’ with an ornate but hardwearing picture frame. The entry portico features wrought iron gates, decorative ceramic floor tiles and a ceiling dome which gives the entry a sense of grandeur. The main floor area to the grand hall and atrium spaces is a wood-grain ceramic tile, laid in a herringbone pattern. The counter features cabriole legs and decorative timber mouldings like an ornate sideboard on a black and white chequered floor with exaggerated columns towering over. The library uses a grand bookcase to display clothes while accessories are showcased in a ‘Gallery’ of elegantly framed niches.
The rear part of the store houses a more intimate zone featuring a darker floor and ceiling that leads into a deliberately ‘over-the-top’ pink dressing room area, with stylishly tall mirrors and panelled doors. This is one area where a neutral backdrop wasn’t required to play a supporting role to racks of clothes. Customers love the plush furniture and floral wall, which are unexpected touches for a volume retail environment.
The colour palette is predominantly a warm white allowing clothing and visual merchandising elements to take centre stage without succumbing to blandness. The colour scheme is further enhanced by the merchandising and graphic branding throughout the store and in the shopfront windows, based around the ‘carnival theme’.
This is the first Glassons to contain a ‘comb-up’ hair stylist and fashion styling room along with many features not previously seen in New Zealand retail. The store has created a buzz for followers of the Glassons label and won new converts to the brand. It also featured as a backdrop to ‘NZ’s Next Top Model’ and customer response to the new store has been overwhelmingly positive.
