Aspecto, Birmingham

I only realised this chain of stores existed when I came to uni in Nottingham and ever since have become quite a fan. There is a nice mix of clothes and feature some key players within the urban 'progressive streetwear' realm. The Birmingham store sits within the ground floor of the Pavillion which is more well-known for its Disney store and places to eat rather than decent shops... perhaps this reflects Aspecto's brand image of being slightly off-centred and out of the blue!?
I like the way that Barbour is stocked and arranged so tightly amongst streetwear brands such as Money and Stussy and Clarks (classics!) footwear is on show next to Adidas Y-3's, to me this store portrays today's streetwear/urban inspired consumer in the way that there is an unforgiving attitude to collaborating old with new and taking inspiration from past trends and key styles, mixing them up and spitting them out as something fresh and unique. I feel from looking at the type of consumer I see myself aspiring to or within the urban cult there is a stronger sense of individuality and spotaniety in the way in which people dress/express themselves using clothing. There is a clear move away from the stereotypical XXL, big-brand-bling vulagrity and 'cheese' of the 90s (thank god) which can definately be seen within the music. Artists such as 50 Cent, The Game and the whole commercial club-style hip hop icons have slowly deminished and now we are left with the uprise of (what was) the underground of back-pack rap & elctro-hop with artists such as Kid Cudi, J Cole, Drake, Theophilus London and the super-individual characters such as Will.I.am and Kanye West which now inspire the fashion industry more so than ever! It is now cool to be seen in Oxfam or 'vintage shops' or to borrow your Dad's loafers and deck shoes.

A result of styling becoming much more eclectic with a more open sense to what is deemed fashionable/accepted (which is now pretty much anything)... even Jay-Z came out of semi-retirement to rebrand himself from his old image into a more fashion savvy, upmarket, modest fashionista wearing "ALL BLACK EVERYTHING" This shift has seen a gap in the market for stores such as Aspecto and Size? and local inde's to move into, stocking an eclectic mix of classic and fresh streetwear brands.

That was then...

This is NOW...
"Oversize clothes and the chains... we off that" <<(Listen.)

RESURGENCE OF TRADITIONALISM - Gieves & Hawkes, Birmingham.

Heritage tailoring, paying homage to their Saville Row roots.

Things are continously getting faster - faster trains, faster computers, faster apps, faster days! If you can't keep up with the speed you can even take shots of caffeine and Red bull to stay on point. There's so much more communication and brands trying to speak to the consumer through stealth marketing, guerilla marketing, viral marketing... we are being attacked by branding and advertising, confused by what brands are saying, this equals 'choice trauma'. Therefore brands such as Gieves & Hawkes revitalising their heritage and promoting their roots (brand essence) is acting almost like a friendly, comforting pat on the back to consumers, reasurring them to "calm down and think about what we're famous for". Gucci are also making similar efforts to reinstate their sophisticated, European style as are many other brands such as Pringle of Scotland, Burberry, Fred Perry, Stone Island...

Since the phenomenom of 'technology' and web 2.0 of the last 10 years I think brands have lost track of their brand essence and how to promote this to the consumer. Understandably the rise of such digital communications such as social networking, blogging, video share, chat rooms etc. have been intriguing for brands to play with but perhaps for some brands their heritage and roots don't fit with this 'techno' age, and neither do their consumers. Consumers also are much more clued up on such digital communications now (more so than many brands!) so they can also be more conversational and interactive with what works and what's right. They can let you know if a brand has done something wrong or designed a collection that they don't like and have the power to let everybody know too!

The increase and development of online shopping now also makes the retail store more important to sell the heritage of the brand and the identity/experience in bricks and mortar and to look more local. A really nice example of increasing 'localability' through a brand has been shown by Size? who's new stores look to reflect the history and roots of the city. e.g. the new Southampton store has been given a nautical theme reflecting its coastal roots for recieving shipments from all over the world. Also the Bristol store, which opened back in 2009 kept it local with an oversized horse on the front of the shop, paying homage to the Horsefair in Bristol, where the store is located. (I will go into this local theme in another post!)
OLD'S COOL.

Alife Hi-tops £20!! @ Size, Birmingham

I don't really know what's going on here! I was stunned to find the highly respected, New York streetwear label ALIFE on sale for £20!
(I couldn't take a photograph of the shoes in the store so you will just have to take my word for it). Usually these would be retailed within the region of £100-£150 (RRP) especially this 'all-over' model which is more limited than the standard colourways. http://www.wellgosh.com/acatalog/Alife_Everybody_High_Wine.html

Have Size? Birmingham gone and hired an ex-British banker to mark up their stock?

If you are a fan of the Alife brand or street wear or fancy bagging a bargain or fancy making a cheeky little ebay profit then i definately advise you go down to Size? Birmingham and check out their 'recession-conscious' footwear sale. They also had the other red/white colourway also for £20 and many other big brands such as Pointer, Nike, Clae and Reebok also for around £20-£25. It's a steal!

This can't be good for Alife's brand image within the UK market which it is fairly unkown to, in comparison to the synonymous repect with the brand name in the US. Pricing (supposedly) high end, market leading brands at the same price as Primark can be detrimental to the brand and its price&quality reputation since we tend to always see high price as high quality as consumers. £20 for a pair of Alife trainers isn't speaking true to the brand image or helping it gain the same type of respect that it has across the Atlantic in the US market. I feel that there is real potential for this brand to grow in the UK especially with the growth in retro, ultra-individual, ghetto-chic trends we are currently seeing at the moment especially in streetwear.

> Get Alife here.

'FRONTIN' Nicky Clarke, Birmingham

Bit of a random one I know but I'm not rating their haircuts! I was just interested in their shop windows and how they have used frosted glass/opaque style masking in the front of the store, restricting your view in. To me, it could add to the exclusivity or luxury nature of a store/brand if you are restricting the view into the store interior. This could be a useful VM technique to be exploited by a high end retailer to add to the luxury ambience and aesthetics. I noticed that the Adidas store in the city centre also used this technique and it really makes the brand stand out from the neighbouring stores that are using the standard, clear glass frontages...

Also the masking technique could work well as a visual guide to the consumer, forcing them to focus their eye on a particular gap to peer through, within the shop window. This gap could then feature a product which is exclusive to that particular store/ a new release or a seasonal must-have product, in a similar style to how Nicky Clarke have used the opaque vs. clear glass to focus the onlookers eye to the hairdressing (their product), which is actually happening within the shop, at eye level, almost like a picture frame to see yourself in... Eye level is buy level

Clear, standard glass is boring, it's all about the tints and masks. You should start frontin'

Harvey Nichols, Birmingham

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGRxjcsUOro

"When I shop at Harvey Nicks, everyone thinks I'm a star..."

The Birmingham Harvey Nicks is very nice. Set in the stylish and artistic Mailbox, it is clearly the dominant store, the name can be seen across the tall glass windows at the front of the store from well outside the Mailbox. I've only ever been to the London flagship store which I feel does have a better, more eclectic collection, naturally, but the Birmingham store measured far higher in terms of customer service. There was an unexpected welcoming feeling when I entered the store (even had the door opened for me by some meathead in a dapper suit!) and the staff genuinely looked happy to be there, not with "the pretty bird behind the till... flipping through Marie Claire", as picked up by the Mitchell Brothers.

The 'new normal' of retail stores looking to try and sell more of an experience and identity was also evident with the use of catwalk videos being played on wall-mounted monitors. This makes the whole environment feel more personal by increasing the amount of interaction/communication from the store to consumer and is more sophisticated than a standard poster. The Birmingham store was also advertising their exclusive Fashion Show on posters and flyers in-store. The show is on Tuesday 2nd March 2010, from 6.30pm and will begin with a champagne reception followed by a runway featuring the key looks from menswear and womenswear Spring/Summer 2010 collections... Nice little bit of PR and marketing for their SS10 collections. For more info, click here

The choice to put Harvey Nicks in the Mailbox away from the main department store competitor, Selfridges, gives the city a bit more stretch in terms of offering an attraction further outside of the city centre. Also this speaks for the 2 stores with Selfridges and the more youthful, commercial Bullring within the heart of the city centre and Harvey Nichols offering more of a sophisticated and artistic setting within the Mailbox. The Visual Merchandise was looking interesting... it was as if the Chapman Brothers had directed the scenes of deconstruction and mannequin massacre which also rang bells of Victor and Rolf's highly conceptual SS10 womenswear collection. The mannequins were styled to look dismantled and deconstructed within a similar backdrop of chaos with the tables and chairs bent and manipulated. It looked like a bomb had gone off in a 50's style kitchen. The whole construction/deconstruction theme looked emminent in B'ham VM with River Island and the DKNY stores using similar ideas with broken boxes and packages. (Watch out for the blog entry on this stuff later)

The Mailbox, Birmingham

No one in Brum got swagger like this...

As a retail environment I MUCH prefer this place in comparison to the Bullring. The space is much more stylish and upmarket. The surroundings are less in-your-face retail in comparison to the hustle and bustle in and around the Bullring, in the heart of the city.

*statistically - you are 99% less likely to get rammed by a buggy or trod on accidently by somoeone you swear you recognise off Jeremy Kyle.

The type of consumer is very different and that's obviously a result of the type of stores the Mailbox offers. The Mailbox houses a couple of nice, little art galleries, a Nicky Clarke salon, Harvey Nics, All Saints and the Handmade Burger Co. to name but a few. This area feels much more 'business' and 'industrial' which is probably due to the upmarket office developments and luxury, city apartments (the Cube development is near to completion and looks sick!) next door to the Mailbox. The whole feel to the Mailbox is much more chillin', you can just take your time and browse or window shop rather than feel like you constantly have to struggle through a traffic jam of people. If you're ever around that area of Birmingham, I strongly recommend taking a walk through the Mailbox (and treat yourself at the Handmade Burger Co. you won't look back!)

SHOCK & AWE - Diesel, Birmingham

BE STUPID

Ever felt like taking a break from the constant drag of your normal dreary life and doing something stupid? Well, Diesel has gone a step further this season committing a whole campaign, urging us to "Be Stupid". In true Diesel fashion, the brand hasn't held back and has gone the whole hog adopting an aggressive marketing strategy, screaming the brand attitude and current philosophy. The campaign is backed up by a series of posters (a selection of which are shown here) shot by photographers Kristin Vicari, Melodie McDaniel and Chris Buck, each showing examples of people 'acting stupid'. The imagery and slogans are witty, edgy and smart which ties in perfectly with the brands identity. The visuals and feel to the campaign hits the target market nail bang on the head. In addition to this, Diesel are trying to recruit 'stupid people' (though judging by the call for entries, which asks "are you doing something particularly stupid right now...like starting a band, building a tree house or creating an art installation", are in fact simply creative people) to be part of a forthcoming music video that will feature the new Diesel collection. The timing to this campaign clearly has a large input on the effect of this "Be Stupid" philosophy. At a time where we are constantly being filled with seriously depressing news (think: recession, Iraq, Haiti earthquake, John Terry acting a prat!) Diesel have clearly played this to their advantage and slapped and nipple crippled the current boring, grey notion of society.

The Birmingham store had the windows and interior VM boldly shouting the "Stupid" theme. Diesel staff all wore the "Be Stupid for successful living" tee's (which come as a free supplement in the February edition of Dazed & Confused). The t-shirts bring out the bold, unforgiving attitude to the campaign as inside the collar reads:

"One size fits all. If it's too big for you. Eat more. If it is too small for you. Diet.
If it fits you. Congratulations."

The feel to this campaign is rebellious, youthful and creative, very much the brand identity of Diesel's adolescent son - FiftyFive DSL (55DSL) who I am also a fan of. This spring, the two brands are sharing a very similar attitude... like father like son! 55DSL has always been a favourite of mine but I feel the brand could be/should be much bigger than it actually is within the UK. With more direct marketing to the consumer and some effective PR (sponsoring a few urban music gigs, skateboard comps, graffiti workshops, graphics/illustration comps - that kinda thing) the 55DSL brand would begin to share the same respect as its better established co-brand. The way the 2 brands are currently marketing themselves however is refreshing to see as many of their competitors are currently playing it safe. LONG LIVE STUPID.