It took a little while, but Italian outerwear brand Stone Island has planted a flag in the American Midwest. The Milan-based company has secured a 180 sqm. (1,938 sq.ft.) unit on the ground floor of a modern four-storey structure in one of Chicago‘s most coveted shopping grounds. Given its 40th anniversary, Stone Island has stepped up its retail design efforts and teamed up with renowned Dutch architecture practice OMA to create a fitting setting, and it’s one that’s possibly going to be a blueprint of sorts for future stores across the planet as well. As all other stores, the setting here is understated, but it’s captured by an off-beat yet innovative palette, such as shredded paper and resins compressed under high pressure to become durable ‘concrete’ panels that serve as displays.
Covering the walls is cork that’s burnt, sandblasted and coated, and the fitting rooms are crafted from sand-coated corrugated steel panels. Shoppers traverse a corridor adorned with a large digital chandelier before entering the actual retail space that’s pretty much framed by the aforementioned elements. Additional furnishings and fixtures include sleek aluminium displays and recessed shelving clad in the same material. A louvered ceiling stretches all the way to the back, tying in all sections of the retail space. The new Stone Island store carries the brand’s full range of apparel, accessories and bags, including items from the Shadow Project collection. Stone Island has a number of new stores in the making in various cities, including Munich, Stockholm and Seoul.
Stone Island
48 East Oak Street (Streeterville)
Chicago, IL 60611
Telephone: +1 312 8775331
Mon-Sat 11am-7pm
Sun 12pm-6pm
Publishers Note
Just to be clear – superfuture® is a design blog and not a political commentator. No surprise there. The scope of our content has always been global and borderless, however that can often mean covering projects in countries where we will not agree with the politics or actions of those countries. In a world that’s as screwed up as ever right now, the focus of our support is to those designers, architects and other creatives who aim to make the world a more liveable one – as opposed to people that try their hardest to destroy it. So if a project hits our desk and we like it based on its design credentials, we may choose to publish regardless of its location or creators nationality. superfuture® has always been inclusive and hopes for all current wars, aggression, violence, hate and extremism to end.
