Vintage jeans: New Levi's flagship focuses on brand heritage

London – Denim brand Levi’s opens a new, experiential retail space today in the capital. Designed by Checkland Kindleysides, the refurbished two-floor flagship on Regent Street aims to tell the story of the craft behind the denim production process.

On entering the store, customers are immediately confronted with an atrium featuring a space that can be used for exhibitions. The space is currently displaying the work and portraits of various young, creative Londoners, such as stage designers and musicians. Each portrait is accompanied by a set of headphones so the customer can listen to their stories, as though in a museum.

‘It’s almost like coming into an atrium of a factory, with the store behind the artisanal manufacturing space,’ says designer Jeff Kindleysides. ‘Everything in the store is an expression of craft.’

Elements of craft are found throughout the new space, such as an original 20s pair of Levi’s in a glass cabinet and rows of bottled of indigo dye displayed on the wall as though in an art gallery. In addition, staff are referred to as drapers, artisans or tyros (an historic term for an apprentice) rather than customer assistants.

Furthering the sensory experience, the basement space features a stage that can be transformed for live musical acts, while all the fixtures and fittings are flexible and can be moved to alter the form and function of the different internal spaces.

Mixing together craft and experience, the new Levi’s flagship is an example of the type of fluid retail space needed to gain traction in today’s turbulent, ever-changing retail market.