“Being Spaces & Brand Spaces”

“BEING SPACES & BRAND SPACES” BEING SPACES “Commercial living-room-like settings in the public space, where catering and entertainment aren't just the main attraction, but are there to facilitate out-of-home, out-of-office activities like watching a movie, reading a book, meeting friends and colleagues, and so on." Now, the need for BEING SPACES is nothing new. Sociologist Ray Oldenburg coined 'The Third Place' in his 1990 book 'The Great Good Place', and described it as a celebration of the places where people can regularly go to take it easy and commune with friends, neighbours, and whoever else shows up. In Oldenburg's view, this complements the Freudian concept of well-being ("having someone to love and work to do", or in Oldenburg's words, "having a mate and a job"), as The Third Place provides a third element: a dependable place of refuge, where one can escape the demands of family and bosses, and thus temporarily forget about one's sorrows and shortcomings. What has changed since 1990 is a slew of new uber-commercial Introduction players (with Starbucks leading the way) who have actively launched thousands of BEING SPACES 21C style, complete with Let's talk branding this month. In particular, branding in the real WiFi and comfy chairs, and are now cramming even more of them world. There is a genuine opportunity to surpass the now ubiqui- into supermarkets, hospitals, hotel lobbies, cinemas, universities, tous 'flagship store' (still seen as the most radical change in the libraries, bookshops, airports, and so on. Hey, as we've pointed world of retail branding), by offering something truly new to con- out before, trends are often a manifestation of an existing need sumers who are not only looking for entertainment, but also for unlocked and serviced in a new way. uniqueness, discovery, trying out, hanging out, empathy and even transformation. Don't get us wrong, Fifth Avenue's flagship stores, Omotesando's brand cathedrals, or the new Maison Louis Vuitton in Paris, which comes complete with a penthouse art gallery and temporary Beecroft exhibition, are still setting retail (as well as architectural) trends. Numbers? How about Starbucks' 10,500 retail locations in North But to really deliver on the "markets are conversations" mantra, a America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East and the Pacific Rim, less grandiose, more two-way approach starts with understanding with another 1,800 new stores to be added before the end of this the appeal of BEING SPACES, and translating that appeal into year? Frothy detail: the company now has 165 stores in mainland true BRAND SPACES. To refresh your memory: China, including 63 in Shanghai, 9 in Shenzhen, and 2 in Wu Xi. The competition isn't slowing down either: from Singaporeʼs Cof- www.trendwatching.com 1 / 11 fee Connoisseurs to UKʼs Costa Coffee, every location frequented by consumers in potential need of a BEING SPACE is fair game in this never-ending expansion game. The BEING SPACES list goes on and on: from laundrettes turned ʻwasch.salon.loungeʼ, like GermanCleanicum , to the boom in pri- Is sipping mint chocolissimo lattes the major hook for BEING vate clubs in London and New York. Even mainstream hotel chains SPACES? Not necessarily: the trend is widespread in Asia in the are waking up to the fact that their long ignored and often staid lob- area of games and entertainment: check out Japanese Manboo bies could be converted into prime BEING SPACES (see the and Fujiyama Land, where gamers can game and 'be' 24/7, Yahoo-Sheraton example further below), for guests and locals alike. showers included! Will entire generations of city dwellers around the world come to expect a BEING SPACE to be available on every corner, 24/7? BRAND SPACES The above spells opportunity. However, what if you're not in the busi- ness of exploiting BEING SPACES, like Starbucks, Manboo or Para- graph, yet you see the value of offering consumers a public place they actually like to be, and not necessarily just to buy your stuff? Partnering with existing BEING SPACES is an obvious choice, and warrants an ideation session by itself, but how about taking it one And with the rise of Free Agents and MINIPRENEURS, expect step further and actually designing your own BRAND SPACE, a more work-centred BEING SPACES like New York's Paragraph space that capitalises—in the broadest sense of the word—on con- and The Village Quill to pop up in talent magnets around the sumer expectations set in motion by BEING SPACES? Think liter- world: members-only centres catering to writers who need a space ally accommodating consumers outside the home and office, be- to be away from it all and actually get some work done. Paragraph coming a relevant and useful part of their daily lives, offering them ("providing an affordable and tranquil working environment for surprise, discovery, empathy, transformation. A place to lounge, writers of all genres") occupies a 2,500 square foot loft space near hang out, try things out, work, or relax. Or all of this at once? Union Square, divided into a writing room and a lounge area. The writing room (open 24/7) has WiFi, partitioned desks, while the Check out the following examples from brands as diverse as ING lounge area contains a kitchenette, a large round table and Direct, Apple, Kodak, Eddie Bauer, and Nokia, who are all creating smaller café tables. The same set up can be found at the Village BRAND SPACES, small or big, temporary or fixed, that go beyond Quill, whose 1,700 square foot loft in Tribeca boasts 20 shared shallow advertising stunts. workstations and a lounge area. And how about combining work, child care and BEING SPACES? Look no further than TwoRooms ("You Work, They Play"), another New York based facility designed to provide office space, childcare and community, all in one setting, for freelance and/or home- based workers who don't have the need for, or can't afford the expense of full-time childcare. The setup? Two Rooms literally provides two rooms at its facility: one for parents and one for chil- dren. The 2,200 square foot communal office area has wireless internet access, computers for rent, a printer, copier, fax and scanner, while the kitchen area offers an opportunity for interac- tion between parents. Parents can use the centre for full-time childcare and office space, or can take advantage of extensive flexibility and varied scheduling options. www.trendwatching.com 2 / 11 1. BRAND SPACES and surprise, discovery, hanging out Forgive us for focusing on POP-UP RETAIL again, but the phe- nomenon just won't go away. Temporary retail outlets, whether brick or mortar or virtual, or even on wheels, may not be the height of BRAND SPACE sophistication from a BEING SPACE perspec- tive, but they do provide an easy source of inspiration. To get your feet wet thinking about a new kind of brand experience and BRAND SPACES, check out the following spottings, from last summer to the here and now. Traditional pop-up brand spaces So let's start with a slew of what can now be considered ʻtradi- RBK/Vacant | Pop-up veteran Vacant is still going strong: last tionalʼ pop-up BRAND SPACES, many of them of the fast-fashion month, it was a RBKxVacant Ventilator pop-up store at the NY, 102 type, eager to surprise either random passers-by or those select few who were in the know. Hereʼs a long list of spottings over the Wooster Street location that brought in the crowds. A coop between last 6 months or so (ammunition!), just copy and paste into your Vacant and Reebok, the store sold exclusive editions of the Reebok brand presentation you'll give to your boss or, if you yourself are Ventilator, and a pre-release of the Miami Vice version. the boss, to your team: American Apparel | Everyoneʼs favourite sexy, socially aware apparel retailer, American Apparel, opened a 45 day pop-up store from Sapphire Inspired | Last November, Surface Magazine and late November to early January this year, in, where else, New York. Bombay Sapphire launched the week long “Sapphire Inspired” Boasting daily spontaneous events like karaoke, dreidel spinning, pop-up store at the Bathhouse Studios in New York. On sale were and mariachi performances. Discounts on select items throughout limited edition items like a Sapphire inspired martini glass entitled the store were included as well. Hereʼs a sample of the events: "Broken Martini" by emerging designer Dror Benshetrit, an Ice – Dude, it's Black Friday @ the Pop-Up Shop Chandelier by designer Eva Menz, stunning wallpaper from fash- – Pop Karaoke Contest! @ the Pop-Up Shop ion designer Jonathan Saunders and lounge furniture created by – Yoga Is Good For You @ the Pop-Up Shop Luisa Ruge. More than 1,000 people visited the store. – NYC's Cliktrax and 'Sup Magazine bring the '05 music videos that mattered to the Pop-Up Shop's big screen. – Pet Holiday Costume Contest @ The Pop-Up Shop – Yoga Is Good For You! Pt.2 @ Pop-Up Shop – Special screening of TV Carnage's A Sore for Sighted Eyes. – L Magazine & Upright Citizen's Comedy @ The Pop-Up www.trendwatching.com 3 / 11 66 North | Back to New York: what better way to introduce yourself to a highly demanding audience if youʼre an outerwear apparel brand from Iceland and you donʼt yet have a New York store? Build a pop-up one! 66°Northʼs temporary shop was open from 1 November until 31 December 2005, and offered DJs, art, design, fashion seminars, discussions ("a fantastic blend of Ice- Leviʼs | And no, not all fashion pop-up stores are in New York: landic fashion, film and music"), and 2,500 square feet of moss- Leviʼs Temporary Store in Milan opened its doors from mid Aug – covered shelving, gravel floors and iceberg tables, to make it look 31 Dec 2005.

Load more