The Space: Off-White’s Miami flagship

Reconceiving the store as a reactive retail space, Virgil Abloh and architects AMO designed the Off-White flagship in Miami Design District to serve seamlessly as a fulfilment centre and multipurpose events space. The idea, according to Samir Bantal, director of AMO, was to create a ‘space that is adjustable and transformable over time.’

The two-storey store is fronted with a moveable wall on the ground floor, which can be pushed back, while all the furniture is placed on wheels or is collapsible. These changeable design elements mean that both the shop floor and storage spaces can be compressed or expanded to accommodate a variety of activities or events.

As such, the store’s physical layout can react and respond to the immediate needs of the Off-White brand, rather than betting on square footage that needs to be used for retail exclusively. Moving away from the strict measure of sales per square foot, the store can leverage its adaptive design to host runway shows and live events or focus on fulfilment.