URBAN OUTFITTERS
For nearly eleven years I worked at Urban Outfitters as a design director, under the amazing Rachel Robertson (CD), Kevin Lyons (CD) and Sue Otto (ECD), defining the global brand identity via retail interiors, fixtures and displays.
Ethos.
Urban Outfitters embraced dynamic branding with no official logo or typeface, no advertising, and residing in a constant state of flux with 3 complete change overs of each store annually: spring, back to school, and holiday.
The identity was therefore expressed via environments, (the store shells absent of product), as well as the materials used to build the spaces, fixtures and displays.
Physical spaces
Initially UO stores were generally adapted to preexisting buildings within communities - theatres (Charlston, Los Angeles), banks (Northampton), watch factories (Pasadena) etc - with a sense of history or connection to that community. The wear and tear was not only preserved but embraced, and accentuated.
Signage
With no set corporate typeface or logo, UO was free to adapt to fashion seasons and the typography for signage and window displays was varied.
Displays
The seasonal displays, brand partnerships, music collaborations and pop-up shops were all connected to fashion seasons and we completely reinvented the environments every few months.
We developed the concepts with trends in mind, the relationship to our own identity, the time of year, and regional specificity. This allowed Miami and Chicago stores to feel like one brand, but still feel local and connected to their communities.
