Armed for flexibility: A futuristic store in Japan

18 : 11 : 2013 Visual Merchandising : Band Of Outsiders : Flexi-simplicity

Tokyo – Los Angeles-based clothing label Band of Outsiders has opened its first store, but rather than opening in its home town, it chose Tokyo. While the Band of Outsiders aesthetic is classic American prep with a Los Angeles downtown twist, the store interiors are based in the future rather than the present.

Central to the store is a large steel structure nicknamed The Monster, which has 28 arms that support every fixture in the shop, including the fitting rooms, the mannequins, display cases and the till. The arms can rotate, so the fixtures are never truly fixed, giving the store layout endless possibilities.

‘The best part of The Monster is that it’s like it’s alive,’ says the brand. ‘The arms all move around concentric tracks, which means we can change the store layout whenever we feel like it.’

Brands are taking a more flexible approach to visual merchandising, creating minimalist, functional structures that can be re-assembled easily. For more, read our Flexi Simplicity design direction.

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