Combining innovation, sustainability, and a stylistic touch, the new NikeLab embodies all that Nike products stand for. Located in New York, Paris, London, Milan, Shanghai, and Hong Kong, NikeLab is all about reusing, recycling, and reinventing. A curated experience, NikeLab sheds the anachronisms of retail to focus on design and culture as much as sport.
Open since June 12, NikeLab takes the innovative Flyknit ideals and applies them to retail. Deconstructing and reconfiguring what were once ordinary retail destinations, each NikeLab promotes sustainability and a unique aesthetic. For example, the Mercer Street location that once housed clunky bleachers now exudes lightness in its design. Appropriately sharing the same block as Alexander Wang, the new design seems minimalistic in comparison to the previous store.
Image Courtesy of Nike
Flyknit-inspired artwork, mirrors, and lighting give a sense of openness that is heightened by the versatility of the space. The tables can be folded away and the light stools, pushed aside. NikeLab has the capacity to continuously evolve, unburdened by even the furnishings.
In terms of the actual products, there’s an artistic display of reinterpreted styles, special-edition capsule collections, and collaborative pieces. The store is scattered with quotes from James Molyneux and Renzo Piano, a reflection of Nike’s prominent partners and followers.
Image Courtesy of Nike
There is also an online component that anticipates the future of e-commerce. With engagement through Twitter and Instagram, it is what Nike retail designer, Tim Rupp, calls “Innovation by innovators.”
