Revealed
December 12, 2024
Vans is pulling out all of the stops and embracing its skate heritage because it reopens its flagship in a return to central London through a revamped retailer that options quite a lot of firsts for the label.
Vans
The Vans West Ed retailer at 214 Oxford Avenue is alleged to contain “an innovative new approach to retail that takes Vans’ skate DNA to a new level through elevated and functional design, exclusive product assortments and regular event programming to create a fully transformable space for the London community”.
It means skateboarding is “front and centre with a one-of-a-kind skateable retail installation”. The shop initially opened in 2019 and “has been transformed into a next-level retail and community destination, celebrating the cultures that made Vans what it is today – skateboarding, music and art”.
It was designed by Milan-based structure agency Andrea Caputo Studio and “showcases skateboarding culture through elevated architectural and retail design”. Key to the design is a totally transformable skate ramp that “brings the House of Vans spirit to a commercial environment through groundbreaking design”.
This is not the West Finish’s first retail skate ramp as Selfridges put in one a number of years in the past. However given Vans’ intimate skate associations, it is one which’s prone to make a huge impact.
The ramp is a 200 sq m creation of Roman travertine stone working all through whole retailer and in a position to be totally merchandised with interchangeable glass modules when not in use as a skate impediment. Designed as a single massive block of stone, completely laid and polished on-site, the ramp is “the beating heart of the store, used for regular skate lessons, demos and events by the Vans skate team and local skate schools”.
Vans’ skate group, together with Martino Cattaneo, Helena Lengthy, Josh Younger, Willow Voges Fernandes and Jordan Thackeray, additionally had enter into this.
Past that, the idea of the shop “takes a radical approach to contemporary retail design, adopting a strategy that reduces the store’s storage space requirements by over 50%, in turn increasing the commercial space substantially”.
The space can be “evolved to support the different cultural moments that Vans will present at the store on a regular basis. One day it can be in skate mode, hosting kids lessons or a skate demo, the next day it can be ready to welcome a live music show or an art exhibition”.
The model sees it as an “opportunity for Vans to create authentic relationships with consumers through genuine partnerships, assortment elevation and curated capsules”.
Manufacturers focus
With that in thoughts, the introduction of third-party companions is a primary for the model in Europe. A “curated selection of partners that align with Vans counterculture values include The Great Frog, Gomi and Lovenskate”.
Vans West Finish has additionally collaborated with London-based inventive Jack Charlie Mitchell on an unique zine for the shop – ‘Feel’ – “featuring work from a diverse spectrum of London creatives”.
The choose companions will evolve frequently, whereas Vans West Finish can even be a “curated and elevated environment for Vans own product assortment” with OTW, Premium and Skate on the centre.
In truth, the shop is the primary owned retail location in Europe that may inventory its most pinnacle class – OTW by Vans – beforehand solely out there at choose companions within the area. Unique Vans West Finish drops can even be out there on the retailer, together with a sequence of ‘Innit’ tees and skate decks “as a playful nod to the local slang”.
Additionally out there might be “some of Vans’ most sought-after and limited collections from previous years” similar to collabs with BAPE and Undercover.
Andreas Olsson, VP and GM Vans EMEA, stated: “When I came back to Vans a little over a year ago, we set out a clear strategy re-setting us for brand elevation through the lens of skateboarding. We had to course correct, making sure we were listening to what youth culture wants and needs from us when it comes to product and experiences. Now just over a year in, we have made big progress against setting new standards for where we want the brand to go and this destination is an important step in that journey.”
