TRENDREPORT

NEW STORE

Check out the new tapas-style fragrance bar from Jo Malone’s latest premium beauty venture.

NEW STORE

Belstaff speeds into the world of high-end fashion.

INSIGHTS

Discover Vogue’s secret weapon.

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R E TA I L I N S I D E R / must-see stores, trends, insights

CLIC

K!

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INSIGHTS

Do traditional stores still stand a fighting chance against new technologies?

PROJECT

Sheffield goes purple for Crystal Peaks shopping centre refresh.

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E-commerce and high-street shopping have been in the fighting ring since the early noughties. As online shopping becomes easier and cheaper, more stories of much-loved stores being knocked from the high street are splashed across the news.

As technology becomes ever more prevalent and all-

encompassing, taking over the replenishment aspect

of shopping, do stores as we know them still have

a fighting chance?

The answer lies with consumers. Though 77% of the UK population shopped online in 2013 (source: ONS), the Achille’s heel of e-commerce is the consumers’ desire to see, smell and touch products before buying.

More than 2 out of 3 buyer journeys are now starting with an online search (source: Amaze), meaning that the functional and emotional aspects of shopping are becoming increasingly polarised.

To remain successful, retail brands must completely rethink their strategies. Stripping off their old identities as merely suppliers of goods, they need to enter the entertainment business – wowing their audiences with brand interaction and social experiences, that are seamlessly joined up to their product offer.

So, what’s in store for the future? The battle between the physical and the virtual will only continue to intensify, and we expect to see a blending of live events in which sellers become inextricably entwined with the performers and artists of today – and where the customer is able to interact in ways increasingly tailored to individual needs.

In the same way that video didn’t kill the movie business (it just got better), so the retail experience will become ever more compelling.

To remain successful retail brands must completely rethink their strategies.

I N S I G H T S

T H E F U T U R E O F R E TA I L

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P R O J E C T S

H O U S E O F H O L L A N DThis year, Beyond collaborated with Elegant Touch and Henry Holland to produce the packaging for Henry’s hot new nail designs, inspired by London Fashion Week 2013.

Inspired by Henry’s love of polka-dot prints, we developed a unique circular window for the nails, placing the designs firmly centre-stage. To give the designs a high-fashion connection we then used the House of Holland logo as the front of pack.

Our creative was rolled out across all nine nail collections, which we have spotted across Stylist and Vogue!

P R O J E C T S

P E O P L E L O V E P U R P L EDescribe purple in two words. Go on, give it a go. Regal and wealth? Creativity and magic? Well, to the people of Sheffield it now signifies ‘Crystal Peaks’, their much-loved shopping centre, refreshed in an unabashed hue of purple chosen by the customers and designed by Beyond.

Using the centre’s unique, angular roof structure, and taking inspiration from the multifaceted tones of a crystal; we developed a series of geometric shapes for the new identity. We also devised a friendly, approachable tone of voice and refreshed the Crystal Peaks logo for use across all communications.

Creative was then rolled out across signage in both the shopping centre and the retail park, giving visitors a fresh new shopping environment to enjoy (and feel very regal in).

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P R O J E C T S

H E L P I N G T U R N T H E TA B L E S O N H E A R T D I S E A S EUnknown to many, The British Heart Foundation (BHF) has over 160 hugely successful Furniture & Electrical stores around the UK, which generate millions of pounds annually towards the fight against heart disease.

These stores were desperately in need of a retail communications strategy to help bring the brand to life through a mix or cause messaging and retail communications, to support the amazing work of its volunteer staff.

With similar projects for Habitat and John Lewis in our portfolio, Beyond was appointed to design, create and implement comprehensive guidelines, including work on the interior design, for a diverse and eclectic range of store types. These new-look Furniture & Electrical stores are now being rolled out across the UK, after the successful completion of two prototype stores. So, keep your eyes peeled for a rejuvenated BHF Furniture and Electrical store near you, and let us know what you think.

Keep your eyes peeled for a rejuvenated BHF Furniture & Electrical store near you.

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Images: Jo Loves - Bank to Boutique blog

N E W S T O R E S

J O L O V E SA new venture from Jo Malone opened this month in Elizabeth Street SW1 where shoppers can try the fragrances at a ‘tapas bar’ style boutique. The senses are engaged, not so much by the simple aesthetic, but by a feast for the olfactory. Jo Loves presents a simple and honest approach to premium beauty with classic packaging and uncomplicated product-led merchandising. Jo seems to have outdone her eponymous brand effortlessly and the exquisite fragrances truly speak for themselves.

N E W S T O R E S

B E L S TA F FBelstaff’s flagship store in New Bond

Street is grand and stunning. Beautifully

detailed in an English heritage style and

oozing with luxury and quality, Belstaff

successfully protects its motorcycle

‘rebels and rockers’ roots, whilst

simultaneously speeding into the

world of high-end fashion.

Whilst English heritage has been

used as a backdrop by many brands,

Belstaff places a unique spin on it

by using subtle engine-like finishes

and detailing across the store. They

showcase bold statement pieces such

as the awe-inspiring motorcycle table

and the latest AV technology. Paper-thin

TV screens show an endless loop of

David Beckham either side of the shop

front glass; and a mirror transforms into

a short movie of Belstaff at Goodwood.

The cosy English country fire place is

a great touch, neatly juxtaposing the

high-speed world of motors.

With the impressive new store, Belstaff

is reaffirming itself as a strong British

motorcycle brand, whilst showing

ambition to make tracks on a wider

area of high-end fashion retail.

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Store images: BFC Shop by Storey studio / Selfridges London Source: Andrew Meredith via WGSN

T R E N D

L I Q U I D F O R M SAs the cold and dark evenings of winter become the ordinary, we bat away the blues by drawing inspiration from bright, bold colours spotted in and around the high-street.

A key style direction for visual merchandising and retail this season is ‘liquid forms’ with a gloopy and melted aesthetic. Reflecting a nostalgia for summer, the theme incorporates bright neons and saturated colours. Window displays showcase colour cosmetics with a dripping or spilt paint look. Colours are mixed and blended to form fluid shapes, for an invasive full colour display.

TREND

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Jade Hobson, Babs Simpson, Phyllis Posnick, Carlyne Cerf De Dudzeele (Bottom Middle), Polly Mellen, Grace Coddington, Camilla Nickerson and Tonne Goodman. Photo © Annie Leibovitz.

Nastassja Kinski with a snake. Photo © Richard Avedon.

Photo © Irving Penn, The Irving Penn Foundation.

Michaela Bercu. Photo © Peter Lindbergh

What can brands learn from the fashion’s leading curators from the last 150 years?

/ Be true to yourself and have a unique point view

/ Get with the times and understand your audience.

/ Realise your vision and be relentless in its pursuit.

We think it’s time brands unleashed the fashion editor within.

I N S I G H T

FA S H I O N E D I T O R S : T H E S E C R E T W E A P O N O F V O G U E

‘What, exactly, is the job of a fashion stylist?’ This was the question posed at the UK premier of ‘In Vogue: The Editor’s Eye’ this month, courtesy of WGSN. The documentary film is a celebration of some of the fashion world’s most creative minds. Vogue editors from the last 50 years, including Tonne Goodman and Phyllis Posnick led the discussion, concluding that. “It’s all about making an image […] but how we get there is almost impossible to explain.”

The film is a brief journey along Vogue’s expansive 120 year history, in which we saw a fascinating social commentary emerge, including disturbing coverage of Germany’s concentration camps, alongside the empowering imagery of the US women’s movement

and impeccably tailored suit trends that subsequently emerged. The documentary is unique in its celebration of fashion in that it highlights the lesser-noted contribution of the fashion editor who often “holds a mirror up to the zeitgeist of the moment”.

The documentary is well worth watching, not only for a view on the world through the eyes of the key influencers in fashion, but also for the beautiful and iconic fashion images littered throughout. From Michaela Bercu rocking a Christian Lacroix tee with Gas Jeans (fashion editor: Carlyne Cerf De Dudzeele), to Nastassja Kinski‘s famed snake photo (fashion editor: Polly Mellon), to name but a few.

Images: VOGUE via WGSN

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