Concept store KIOSK N1C combines fashion and books in Coal Drops Yard

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
May 10, 2019

A new lifestyle retailer offering a curated selection of hard-to-find fashion pieces and independent books and magazines has opened its first bricks-and-mortar shop in the new Coal Drops Yard.

Located on Lower Stable Street, a new street next to Central Saint Martins, the store will stock emerging fashion and lifestyle brands including Champion, RoToTo, Heavyweight Collections, Haeckels, Buaisou and Japanese skate brand Evisen, which recently collaborated with Adidas.

The space will be also used for fashion, beauty, music and art events, hosting a number of retailer and external partner pop-ups, workshops, film screenings and experiences.

James Bowthorpe, founder of KIOSK N1C said it's “a space for like-minded collaboration and a celebration of fashion, art and culture. By taking a curated approach to both KIOSK N1C and Lower Stable Street and handpicking a community of emerging fashion and lifestyle brands, every visit is an opportunity for shoppers to learn, engage and discover something new.”

The opening reinforces Lower Stable Street’s credentials as the home of established and up-and-coming experimental brands following reports that footfall at the Thomas Heatherwick-designed Coal Drops Yard has failed to meet expectations.

Launched last year, the new shopping and restaurant district secured a strong line-up of retailers, including Paul Smith, Rains, Wolf & Badger, and Cubitts, for its opening. But the exposure of its main courtyard, and the fact that it is located in a part of the city not known as a shopping destination, made the £100m scheme struggle to boost footfall during the winter.

The summer could see the shopping destination gain more ground, with a Sunday market planned on Lower Stable Street and the return of the grass steps by Regents Canal helping improve dwell time in the area.