Woolrich opens new experiential flagship in NYC

By

Robin Driver

Published
Sep 10, 2019

American outdoor apparel brand Woolrich has announced the opening of a new flagship store, complete with café, snow room and customization area, in NYC’s SoHo neighborhood.

 
Located at 121 Wooster Street, the 4,000-square-foot space was designed in partnership with architect Andrea Caputo and boasts a flexible modular concept that can be adapted to accommodate a range of different possibilities, including collection displays, installations and community events.
 
The space’s aesthetic focuses on organic elements, featuring a timber plank ceiling, raw bark detailing, leather accents and “living greenery arrangements” created by celebrated plant artist Satoshi Kawamoto, creative director of Green Fingers.

Developed in collaboration with Italian snow-making systems firm TechnoAlpin and debuted at the opening of Woolrich’s Milan flagship in 2017, the new store’s multi-sensory snow room offers customers the chance to test out the brand’s outerwear products in extreme weather conditions, including simulated snowstorms and freezing temperatures.
 
Woolrich has further chaneled the experiential retail trend by teaming up with SoHo-based Ground Support Café to create an on-site coffee shop of its own, while visitors will be able to learn about the brand’s history in an in-store museum area.
 
With its latest flagship, the storied American label is also looking to tap into the personalization boom by offering customers a range of customization options for the apparel pieces they purchase.
 
“When I developed the concept for NY, I was focused on the desire to address consumer needs along with the changes I saw happening in the retail environment,” explained Woolrich Global Creative Director Andrea Canè in a release. “In our Milan store, I experimented with historical storytelling, sensorial experience and integrating the urban with the outdoor. The New York Flagship is the natural evolution of that and there’s also a sense of coming back home in line with our American roots.”
 
Founded in 1830, Woolrich currently operates a network of 32 stores around the world, including locations in Boston, Toronto, London, Milan and Tokyo.