Aeropostale: Unveils the Free-Spirit Fashion Studio

Aéropostale opened its doors amidst much hype in the Indian capital which has seen the debut of many popular international brands in the recent past. For Arvind Lifestyle, who brought this iconic brand to India, it sounded impossible to deliver an international store design in an incredible span of just two weeks of on-site work starting first week of September which they did!

A typical Aéropostale studio store is put together with six retail category modules - the Entry, Fashion (high-fashion), Heritage (signature apparel), LLD (Live, Love, Dream - special collection) and Sale (mark-downs). The size, location and scale of the store determine the selection of categories that are put together to create the concept. The store in Delhi is an example of a flagship that features a representation of all the categories. Gajpal Singh Rathore, Head - VM and Projects, Arvind Lifestyle, explains, "Although above-explained is the perfect example of retail design for the brand, we have combined'Entry' and'Fashion' in single space and we don't have a separate space for LLD, although the store will showcase the collection. We will have the'Sale' section as a separate zone once we are a season old and roll out sale.”

The store features the boys' collection on the LHS and the girls' which dominates 60% of the space. The store's fashion offerings are presented in a busy and happening density of merchandising fixtures. To ensure their global benchmark qualities, 100% of the fixtures are imported from China and the US. The brand commissioned Navi Mumbai-based General contractor Details to install the fixtures and also execute the entire civil and interiors work. Talking on the challenges, over and above the imported lights, track lights were locally procured. The main façade signage was produced and installed by Dubai-based LP Flex.

The store uses a studio concept involving a rugged, reclaimed look, where outside of the store uses natural bricks and inside of the store (Entry and Fashion area) used the same reclaimed look but with white bricks. To extend the same look, the ceiling was finished with normal brush painting than the usual spray painting to achieve the rugged look. And combined space of'Entry' and'Fashion' area has suspended tin ceiling with specialty lights while in the'Swing' and'Heritage' space, ceiling beams run across the width of the store. Some parts of store walls are adorned with life-size images of iconic locations in the US.

The store visual merchandising and display is planned to draw attention to its fashion statements across all the categories. Stylized casual posing mannequins are strategically placed to feature the coordinated fashion stories across the store amidst the high density merchandise presentation supported by clear category signs.

The brand plans to open more than 10 stores in the next one year. The next Aeropostale store is slated to open at Noida's Mall of India, India's biggest mall.

Kishor Shah of Details explains, "Just as the brand's name starts with the letter 'A', the learning experience in the project was like learning to write from the first letter. All the fixtures were imported and despite some logistical challenges we managed to have them installed perfectly as per the plan within the tight deadline. Plus, we had the pressure of readying the complete store right before Diwali.”

Aéropostale has used some subtle design'glocalization' in the adaptation of its concept in the context of the Indian customer. Gajpal Singh Rathore, Head - VM and Projects, Arvind Lifestyle explains, "According to the benchmark design, they should be having only two trial rooms but in India, they extended the number to four. Also, keeping Indian mindsets in mind, the doors of the trial rooms open inside while in the US, they open outside.”

INTERVIEW WITH Kenneth Ohashi, SVP, International and Global Licensing, Aeropostale
 
How was the design you had in mind for the Indian store different from the present stores in the USA?

The Aéropostale store format at Select City is actually our most recent store design, the Studio Concept, which is currently being rolled out globally. The Aéropostale store at Select City is slightly smaller than our typical box, so we did make some minor adjustments.

What made India a prospective market for you?

A myriad of factors: the huge youth population (40% under 25), growing economy, and a consumer that already had an existing relationship with the Aéropostale brand. Even before we opened our first store, we saw Aéropostale t-shirts, hoodies and jeans across all of the major cities. We also know the consumer here is truly knowledgeable about global brands through the use of technology - and appreciates casual, comfortable and high quality fashion at great prices - which is our winning formula. We priced our fashion at really strong values - for example, our graphics under 1,000RP and denim starting at 2,400RP. Most importantly, we found the ideal partner to work with, Arvind Brands.

What kind of VM you looked at for your India store?

Our visual merchandising strategy is relatively consistent in our international markets - our front room typically carries the latest fashion trends and turn very quickly. The middle of the store houses our graphics and denim, while the back of the store carries our heritage items and Live Love Dream - our active line.

What sort of support did you receive from Arvind or from Select City walk mall?

Arvind is Aéropostale's licensee and partner in India. We will work with them to execute the expansion of the brand - including securing real estate, setting up new retail channels including department store and e-commerce, and developing product that is exclusive to the local market - in addition to our global line. The management teams at Select City Walk were incredibly supportive - as you know we hosted the Aero Fest concert at the mall, and they were also gracious in helping us host Sonam Kapoor for our grand opening.

How was your experience to work with India's vendors and agencies?

It has been nothing short of fantastic. We signed the agreement just three months ago - an unbelievably short timeline to get all of this work done!