Retail

With this location, the Stockholm-based fashion house Acne Studios was launching its innovative retail design concept in the United States. Having completed the New York home for Acne Studios’ executive chairman, we were asked to work with Sophie Hicks Architects (London) on the design of the West Village store.

The site was originally three small stores that Acne Studios demolished to create one large space. The clean, minimal aesthetic is articulated with a glass and stainless steel store front, custom stainless steel millwork, and custom curved translucent glass walls for the lighting. These refined materials contrast starkly with the raw natural concrete floors, and the minimal architecture highlights Acne Studios merchandise.

“The stores are a great back drop for our clothing, shoes, and accessories,”
says Mikael Schiller Executive Chairman for Acne Studios.

Madison Avenue is the global flagship store for Acne Studios. Having previously completed Acne Studios’ Greenwich Village store, we were asked to work closely with the label’s in-house design team to realize the vision for this uptown location.

The Madison Avenue store is Acne Studios’ only store to feature gold as its signature tone. The metal interior walls and fittings in aluminum have been electrostatically gilded. The black asphalt floor and structural pillars are dotted with semi-precious colored stones. The storefront is entirely wrapped in glass, which curves at the corner.

A custom LED ceiling, which was fabricated in Paris, creates a glowing element throughout the entire store. The “rough” custom furniture designed by Max Lamb acts as a strong counterpoint to the more refined gold finishes and jewel-studded asphalt floor and columns. “For me,” Creative Director of Acne Studios Jonny Johansson says, “it was important to elevate the store design into something spectacular since the location demands it in a way.”

For Frame’s first store in New York, founders Erik Torstensson and Jens Grede wanted a blend of NY, LA, and Swedish inspirations and styles. “For each of the stores, we try and design to the relationship that we and Frame have with the city we are in,” Torstensson told Architectural Digest.

In New York, the design expression is “harder, tougher, more speedy, and more high-end when it comes to fashion” according to Torstensson. To reflect this belief, the project uses such elements as off-white stone tile flooring, massive black and white marble display tables and a “statement” weathered metal table that was built in Sweden and left outside to weather for a year.

The design intentionally contrasts high and low, old and new, and soft and hard elements. “A store is an opportunity to educate new consumers on how to use Frame—what are our silhouettes, and how do you put it together, says” Grede.