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Retail Therapy Heidi Easton reports for sdea on the latest and greatest store designs.


Once again, I have been out on the road investigating some of the best retail store designs of the last year. Whilst by no means fully comprehensive and purposely leaving out some ‘iconic’ stores, like Apple in Covent Garden, because, well, we all know they are the best. I have selected ten stores covering a diverse range of retail trades, not all in the UK, that I feel have good reason to be classed as the ‘best’ in retail design and attempt to explain why.


White Stuff, fashion emporium extraordinaire


The 6,500 square feet, three storey spectacle on George Street in Edinburgh that is White Stuff is definitely cutting edge. Not in the more familiar sense of the word, for there are no sleek, minimal glass and aluminium structures or furniture on display in this historic building. Yet the originality and theatricality of the retail display are unequalled and therefore cutting edge. Here in the legendary Grays building, home of the hardwear retailer for more than 100 years, lives now a store with a difference, a feel of its own – a unique identity!


Yes, we have seen similar before, Anthropologie launched two stores in London of this ilk but this is arguably the best store of the year and best of all, it’s not in London. White Stuff has successfully transformed one of Edinburgh’s heritage sites into a visual merchandiser’s dream. For the store is crammed full of quirky flair and style, yet evokes the elegance and grandeur long since forgotten and once inherent in this Georgian building. 89 George Street has been beautifully restored to its former glory.


Externally the elaborate facade remains unchanged, although within, their quest to flood the building with as much natural light as possible was achieved by cutting through the three floors and ceiling, creating in turn the grand atrium and an impressive skylight. The eight metre high living tree at the centre of the ground floor now highlights this wonderful feature and creates a great meeting spot and place to rest. It reaches up through the atrium and leads your eye directly to the upper levels, and the skylight high above. Further windows were opened up at the back and elaborate cornices


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sdea directory of shopfittings and display


www.shopdisplay.org


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