5 Inspiring Concept Stores Reinventing Retail

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The concept store has always been a place where brands can reinvent themselves, diversify their offerings, test new products, and surprise consumers. A true laboratory of new trends, this store format is inherently at the forefront of innovation and creativity. It is a space where all kinds of experimentation are possible.

In this article, we explore 5 extraordinary concept stores that are redefining the codes of retail.

1. Gentle Monster Haus 0 10 10 10 1, Shanghai

The Korean eyewear brand Gentle Monster is known for its avant-garde, futuristic designs, but its retail spaces are equally remarkable. Whether in America, Europe, or Asia, the scenography in each store is designed to be spectacular and innovative, with immersive installations, theatrical elements, and oversized sculptures that transport visitors to imaginative and surreal worlds, methodically blurring the line between art and commerce. In Shanghai, the Haus 0 10 10 10 1 concept store—the largest Gentle Monster store to date with a surface area of 3,270 square meters—follows this rule perfectly.

At the entrance, visitors are greeted by an imposing and ultra-realistic two-meter-tall female android head, designed as part of the brand's collaboration with Maison Margiela, set in a cybernetic ambiance. Further inside, contemporary art installations, interactive structures, and screens showing experimental videos blend seamlessly with shelves and displays.

Still on the ground floor, the café brand Nudake, created by Gentle Monster, features a conceptual space called "The Croissant Gym," showcasing sculptures of dumbbells with pastry weights, boxing gloves made from pastry dough, and sofas mimicking the shape and color of bread rolls, thus merging art, sports, and indulgence.

On the second floor, visitors can discover the world's largest collection of Gentle Monster eyewear, while the third level serves as an exhibition space, and the fourth is occupied by the perfume brand Tamburins.

In an interview with Design Boom, Gentle Monster CEO Kim Han-gook explained the underlying principle behind Haus’s design: “We currently have over 100 artists on our teams, specializing in spatial art, architecture, interior design, sculpture, engineering, and robotics, which is very unusual for a fashion brand. Collaborating with artists from diverse backgrounds allows us to go beyond simple store design and create unique, fascinating, and memorable spaces unmatched anywhere else in the world. With Haus, we powerfully express our vision of the future of retail, breaking all the codes and reinventing shopping spaces to make them spectacular.”

2. Lacoste Arena, Paris

In 2023, Lacoste established itself on the Champs-Elysées and opened a 1,600-square-meter space fully molded in its image, aiming to showcase the full breadth of the crocodile brand, with offerings ranging from sportswear to streetwear to traditional fashion. Named Lacoste Arena, this concept store is currently the largest Lacoste store in the world.

With nearly 10,000 items for sale, including exclusive collections, celebrity collaborations, eco-friendly clothing such as the Loop polo made from recycled fibers from old polos, or the Cotton Flower model made of untreated organic cotton, as well as a wide range of products dedicated to tennis, golf, and fitness, Lacoste aims to attract a diverse audience, from fashion lovers and trend enthusiasts to seasoned athletes and responsible consumers.

Beyond the exceptional range of products, the Lacoste Arena experience was designed to be as innovative as possible, including a meeting space, a sneaker customization service, an immersive tunnel where art meets sport through a work by artists Trajectoire Studio and Le Diamantaire, and a "Sport Experience Room" where visitors can embody one of Lacoste’s greatest ambassadors thanks to a highly realistic interactive setup. Thierry Guibert, CEO of Lacoste, summarized the concept of this inspiring space during its inauguration: "More than a store, Lacoste Arena will be the beating heart of the brand, aiming to completely renew the customer experience with numerous technological innovations, blending interactive and immersive experiences. This opening is a strong signal for the brand's influence in France and around the world. This flagship will be a meeting point at the crossroads of cultures, generations, and styles, allowing us to share the emotion and expertise of Lacoste with our customers."

3. Gucci Wooster, New York

In the heart of SoHo at 63 Wooster Street, Gucci has created a concept store that redefines the luxury shopping experience to make it even more refined and premium. Located in a 155-year-old building that once housed a pencil factory, the space has retained its original structure, featuring brick walls, wooden floors, tin ceilings, and classic columns. These historical elements have been carefully integrated with modern stainless steel, glass, and cement finishes, creating a space where the past meets modernity, and the old coexists with the new in perfect harmony.

Spanning over 3,000 square meters, this grand-style concept store houses a wide range of Gucci products, including women's and men's ready-to-wear, shoes, jewelry, accessories, and exclusive Gucci Valigeria lines. The epitome of sophistication, the four fitting rooms are adorned with lacquered Rosso Ancora panels, adding an elegant touch to the shopping experience.

Another highlight of this timeless space, the Gucci Wooster Bookstore features stunning books on contemporary art and photography, with carefully selected titles, including many out-of-print editions.

Finally, in homage to SoHo's cultural heritage, Gucci Wooster also showcases a collection of modern and contemporary art pieces by American and international artists such as Alighiero Boetti, Larry Bell, Lucio Fontana, Autumn Knight, and Sasha Stiles, exploring the expressive nature of human gestures and the materialization of the abstract.

4. 10 Corso Como, Milan

In 1990, Italian art gallerist and fashion journalist Carla Sozzani opened 10 Corso Como in Milan, a hybrid space that, at the time, mixed showroom, exhibition space, café, and bookstore, and which has experienced growing success over the years, becoming a must-visit destination for many fashion lovers.

In 2024, this iconic concept store was completely redesigned. The interior spaces were divided into two vast rooms, the art gallery on one side and the showroom on the other, offering visitors a unique immersive experience. According to the agency 2050+, which was responsible for this transformation, these new spaces were "designed as a flexible theater," consisting of raw, clean surfaces, arranged with multifunctional elements that can be used in various configurations. The overall ambiance recalls the building’s industrial origins, which was a former factory, allowing for the creation of a wide variety of atmospheres and uses. "Through renewed architecture and cutting-edge cultural offerings, 10 Corso Como will unleash its potential as a 'transitory museum': a space in progress, without a fixed purpose or role," explain the designers.

5. Maison Margiela, London

Located at 22 Bruton Street, the MM6 Maison Margiela concept store spans 190 square meters. Dutch architect Anne Holtrop completely designed this fascinating space, adorning it with walls and columns shaped to mimic textile molds, with folds and bumps that give the illusion of fabric floating in the wind. "After removing the mold, the imprint of the textile remains visible on the surface of the walls and columns, along with the folds and volume of the plaster that pushed the mold outward. The walls and columns are inverted so that we feel like we’re looking at the lining of a garment or the inside of a wall," Anne Holtrop explained when the space opened.

Beyond these aesthetic peculiarities, MM6 presents the brand's mixed collections with great simplicity and refinement, including men's and women's ready-to-wear, accessories, shoes, jewelry, and eyewear.

Unlike the rest of the store, the walls and ceilings of the fitting rooms are covered in layers of hand-brushed glossy paint reminiscent of Japanese lacquered cabinets. According to Maison Margiela, this unique concept store reflects the brand's "evolved visual language," developed by John Galliano when he was the creative director.