SHOP TALK

RANDOM NOTES: The North Face puts its passion for adventure and the great outdoors front and center in its new flagship in London. Designed to inspire customers to explore the world, the 4,300-sq.-ft. store features skylights, live greenery, tree trunks that extend through the ceiling windows, and such tech enhancements as a virtual reality experience that takes viewers on a journey through Nepal. Digital screens (“sky windows”) set in the ceiling have imagery that reflects outside weather conditions. The North Face was designed by Green Room, London. ... Lord & Taylor entered the off-price format space, with Find @ Lord & Taylor, in Paramus, New Jersey. Six additional stores are reportedly planned for 2016. ... Canada’s Structube, which specializes in modern furniture, is looking to expand, with plans to open stores across the United States. ... Bloomingdale’s opened its first location in the state of Hawaii, a three-level, 165,000-sq.-ft. store at Ala Moana Center in Honolulu. Graphic palm frond prints and other Hawaiian motifs are combined with the retailer’s iconic aesthetic, including its signature black and white decor and polished concrete floors. Technology, including “smart” fitting rooms, is used throughout to enhance the overall shopping environment.



COMPANY UPDATES: Online beauty subscription retailer Birchbox named Benjamin Fay VP retail development and customer experience, responsible for the design, real estate and construction of the company’s offline retail stores, and for translating Birchbox’s core brand experience into a new and innovative store design concept. His prior experience includes the role of senior director at Apple, where he was responsible for the design of the brand’s retail stores worldwide.



REGISTER NOW: Learn how digital technology is transforming the physical store experience at Chain Store Age’s annual SPECS Conference, March 13-15, at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas. Now in its 52nd year, SPECS is the retail industry’s premier event for executives involved in the planning, design, construction and maintenance of stores and restaurants. For more info, go to specsshow.com.