Shortly after the turn of the millennium, Bei Kawakubo of Japanese label Comme des Garçons walked through London’s Dover Street and and checked out a location for her new concept store. The street was not an established shopping area. But the shop with its seven levels was spacious and ideal for her concept. Her intention was to not only offer fashion of her own brand but also pieces of her favorite other labels. On top, the interior was to be changed twice yearly, in parallel to changing seasons. After a twelve-year long success story, the market had to leave Dover Street. With its mix of fashion, art, design, jewelry and perfumes, the concept store had become a huge attraction. Rent in the area rose immensely and the store moved to London’s Haymarket in 2016. The good news: the new store is three times larger than the old one. “I want to create a kind of market where various creators from various fields gather together and encounter each other in an ongoing atmosphere of beautiful chaos“ says Kawakubo about her store. The DSM vibe now spreads across five levels and almost 3,000 square meters and features labels such as Rick Owens, Vetements or Gosha Rubchinskiy and their approach to presentation. For the opening, Rem Koolhaas’ OMA- and AMO-Teams designed the exhibition of jewelry label Repossi.
An extra room for limited edition sneakers lets the hearts of sneaker lovers beat higher.
Architecture
The building was built by Thomas Burberry in 1912.
Interior Design
Changing
Design
Rei Kawakubo
