Retail Case-study: Nikes House of Innovation by Torvits + Trench out of space
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In our last piece, we outlined a range of shifts and pulls within the retail landscape. This broad-brush portrayal of insights prompted many questions, and inspired us to delve deeper, to understand how some of these bold and leading-edge retail spaces are actually being experienced ‘live’. There's also a floor dedicated to customizable apparel, which includes not just changing the color of certain garments, but also switching out materials and even combining two different pieces of clothing into something entirely new. For a look at NYC's incredible new Nike flagship, open as of today, November 15, see the on-hand imagery. The fourth floor's Sneaker Lab alone houses the largest concentration of Nike footwear anywhere in the world, allowing you to browse through cutting-edge performance silhouettes as well as a bevy of classics. Although for right now the House of Innovation flagships are limited to just New York and Shanghai, Sparks said they plan to open one in Paris in December of 2019, and a new Nike Live store is in the works for Tokyo, though it hasn't been completed yet.
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Designed as a celebration of the sports brand’s trailblazing spirit, the store gives visitors a peek behind the curtain of how things are done and created at Nike. In addition to giving shoppers an avenue with which to create their own products, the flagship is also focused on showing customers where the brand has been. The retailer also plans to host footwear designers in the flagship to talk to customers about the shoes they've created, the designing process and what the features do for the shopper. That's not to mention a sneaker lounge on the Sneakerlab floor, which displays a series of Nike's recent sneaker releases in a mirrored room — a form of storytelling which Madden describes as an "invitation" for customers to join the sneaker community. Nike recognizes that customers are used to shopping on the internet, and it is banking on a set of in-house app capabilities to make in-person shopping a seamless, almost digital experience, rather than a hassle. Visitors add garments via QR codes to a virtual dressing room list; when they’re finished with browsing, they can head to a fitting room where their items will be waiting.
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In addition, you can visit the Sneaker Bar and solicit the assistance of a store athlete or a digital read-out of locals-only data. Customers then have the opportunity to reserve items with just a phone call and have them held in an in-store locker for convenient pickup. "We actually talk about the House of Innovation as, really, Nike experiences for the world," Sparks said of the difference between the retailer's new flagship and its popular store in SoHo. "It's where we're going to give the deepest dive into our product innovation and the stories behind the designs and we'll be focused on large, global sports moments and how they come to life in New York City." "Part of the goal of this experience is that we're bringing our stories to life on the world's biggest stage," Cathy Sparks, global vice president and general manager of Nike Direct stores, told Retail Dive in an interview in the women's section of the store. "Doing it the way that retail's always operated by bringing the best product, the best experiences to life, but what we've added to this location is the really strong integration of digital and physical and allowing them to take their shopping experience into their own hands."
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Shots of Nike athletes and new products play on a loop from screens placed at all angles around the "beacon." But there's no music, really, nor even words — just sounds. It's jarring and distracting without the usual lull of top 40s playing in the background, but that's how it's supposed to be, according to Sean Madden, senior director of product for Nike Direct, who said it was about the "energy," "clash" and "noise" of New York City. The store, the first of its kind in Europe and the latest of only three Nike flagship experiences in the world — the others are in New York and Shanghai — spans 26,000 square feet and four floors. The Manhattan flagship, the first of its kind in the United States, is not only a shrine to sportswear but an homage to Nike’s unique design process—past and future.
This time we also had an ‘on the ground’ team of experience and spatial strategists, visiting the store on different days, to help us uncover meaningful insights. The first Nike House of Innovation 001 opened in Shanghai, followed promptly by the New York flagship 000, and with a third on its way in Paris. Across each location, Nike presents cross-category, consumer-focused spaces and experiences, and promises city-exclusive items specific to each city. For this piece, we’re zooming in on Nike’s new retail concept ‘House of Innovation’ to suss out if it’s delivering on its promises to customers, and achieving its goals as a pioneer in the retail scene. With a name like "House of Innovation" — which was already introduced through the launch of Nike's Shanghai flagship last month — it's no wonder the store is full of customization opportunities. It's also a lesson in mobile technology that actually adds utility (and convenience) for the shopper.
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In theory, a great idea, but the mannequins were either dressed in outfits only a Nike mannequin could wear, or in looks so high fashion it was really difficult to decipher what the individual elements were and how you could put them into a look for yourself. In this case, Nike would have done better to be a bit more practical in order to help people shop easily (for ‘Nike Women Yoga Favorites’ for example) and leave the high fashion to the L05 Expert Studio. The mass appeal of the Sneaker Lab did however make us reflect on how much, beyond the enticing world of experiential and lifestyle type offerings, connecting to a brand is still inextricably linked to the love we have for the products they create. On L04 is the Sneaker Lab, which displays the largest collection of seasonally current Nike footwear anywhere. We’ve taken a close look at the 6-story retail mecca in New York — with the intention to be purposefully critical, looking into what is most successful, and where there might be further opportunities.
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The House of Innovation 000 also works with the Nike App to bring you a more convenient retail experience. With NikePlus Member Unlocks, customers can request an item be brought to them for fitting. The app also features Shop The Look, which lets you scan in-store mannequins to learn more about what they're wearing, and even browse sizing. Quite possibly the best aspect of the House of Innovation and Nike App working together is Instant Checkout.
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All-in-all, the mobile features are focused on easing the customer's path to purchase. And it also comes into play for customers who saw something online but want to check it out in store before they buy. For those shoppers, the app allows them to pick up reserved items in a set of lockers by scanning their member pass. "Nike Arena," the floor most customers enter on, doesn't actually have any product on it. There's a large customization area where consumers can make changes to a pair of shoes they liked — change the color of the laces, of a Swoosh, of the whole shoe — and some other artistic elements, like the aforementioned "beacon," but the majority of the product is still to come. The fourth floor marks a dramatic shift in the store’s design language and hosts what to many will be the main attraction—the Nike Sneaker Lab, home to the largest collection of the brand’s footwear in the world.
In both concepts, convenience and customization seem to be top priorities for the iconic sports brand, but collecting customer data is high on the list. And the members-based mobile app, which features so heavily throughout the store, is the retailer's best way of doing that. Despite being sprawled over 6 floors, and designed to offer varied services within compartmentalised environments, HOI impressively does feel like one cohesive and connected place.
“[It’s where people] can come in, have a seat, chat with our store team, who will likely offer them a kombucha from the local coffee shop down the street that’s in a fridge right behind the bar — and provide the fastest sneaker-selling service in the country,” she said. There were installations and moments throughout the store that alluded to sneak peeks into the process of making. On L04, for example, a series of screens on tripods and tables with laptops featuring calculations and drawings hinted at some of the stories behind the creation of the LeBron shoe, but on closer inspection they were more eye candy, and less about the science behind. We can see the intention here was to share snippets of the process — but we felt more could have been revealed.
On a particularly miserable, damp day in Manhattan, people milled throughout the store—trying on shoes amid heaps of shopping bags, or pausing to watch Athletes customize apparel within their glowing workshops. Unfortunately, its shopping appeal outweighed any feelings of reverence, and hence it was the busiest and noisiest floor. To conjure ‘contemplative museum’ over ‘crowded marketplace’, it might have been more daring to showcase the shoes as one views precious objects, and offer buying only online or direct through the app. Using the product (in this case shoes) as a symbol, rather than purely as a commodity to be purchased, would elevate a simple display to another level. Are such bells and whistles enough to draw an audience beyond tourist-laden Fifth Avenue?
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Here, in a loungelike setting, members of NikePlus (a free service available through Nike’s app and website) can schedule one-on-one apparel consultations for a big race or for a night out. Here too, as on the first floor, shoppers can work with specialists to customize and remix their clothing. “As stores moved from transaction to experience, we are also moving from transaction to relationship,” explains Madden.
There wasn’t enough in-depth storytelling to walk away having learnt something around what Innovation means for Nike. This was a shame as we’d all love to see some super nerdy content about what actually makes Nike shoes what they are, in easily-digestible bits. Of the above cool facts only #1 was on display for curious customers — #2–4 we found out by talking to an (admittedly very knowledgeable) Nike ‘expert’. So much thought and consideration has gone into details of the design — it’s a shame not more of that great content is shared more visibly. Featuring a “digitally powered” end-to-end consumer experience, the outpost is the latest representation of “Nike’s bold vision for the future of retail,” according to Cathy Sparks, global VP and GM of Global Nike Direct Stores and Service.
The designers wanted to convey a sense of movement across the building, so they turned to slumping, a technique for bending red-hot glass beneath its own weight to lend strength and beauty. Each glass panel ripples with uniform etched waves angled at 23.5 degrees—the precise angle of Nike’s iconic Swoosh. It’s the sort of building Mies would have created had he gotten hold of a pair of Air Force 1s. This new mark in the retail landscape is undoubtedly the ultimate opportunity for Nike to get ahead by being heavily purpose-led, rather than being just another shop stacked with stuff. By providing your information, you agree to our Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy.
Its pristine white inner sanctum is a nod to Nike’s “canvas,” the triple white sneaker. Such design moves recall Snarkitecture’s work for Kith (the New York sneakerhead mecca) and undoubtedly intend to capture a similar hypebeast clientele. But at the House of Innovation, Nike places its status as a footwear originator and innovator front and center, from a sculptural knitting machine (similar to the tractor beam downstairs) to the guts of a Nike Zoom Vaporfly Elite splayed out on a table. In November, Nike opened a 68,000-square-foot store devoted to it on Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue, calling it Nike House of Innovation 000. The flagship, the first of its kind in the United States, is not only a shrine to sportswear but an homage to Nike’s unique design process—past and future.
There's a customization lab on one side just past the entrance and a massive structure (what Nike executives are calling a "beacon") stretching up through the entryway to the five floors above it. From customizable sneakers and apparel to a localized Speedshop for New York customers, the flagship does just about everything — including mobile. Just beyond, at the back of the space, a glowing counter is set against a video backdrop.
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