March 21, 2024 |
Hold onto your Crush Totes and your Ursa Drop Earrings because starting Saturday, beloved industry disruptor LN-CC is reopening its one-of-a-kind London store. It’s been some years since the Level Group-owned multibrand store shut its doors during the Covid-19 pandemic, and while it has certainly maintained its stance as a “nexus of creativity and cool” in the digital realm, punters have desperately missed the experiential retail concept that its physical premises offered. The reopening stands to elevate its brick-and-mortar presence, amplify the LN-CC roster and cater to its already devoted fan base both in-store and online. Located at 18-24 Shacklewell Lane, the newly redesigned emporium redefines what a fashion destination can be.
Reece Crisp, buying and creative director at LN-CC tells 10 that the grand reopening feels “fantastic” and like “another iconic moment” for the retailer. “Spaces are important now more than ever within the retail landscape, this is not just about us but about celebrating and spotlighting multi-brand retail. For us it’s always been about championing curation and editing, particularly the way a product is presented,” he says. “We really want people to discover and explore. LN-CC opening again is a really great moment for London – we have always strived to embed ourselves within both culture and community – being the place where underground and popularity meet. We remain a beacon of independence and the reopening marks a new era – the timing couldn’t be better – both globally and in London – consumers and brands are crying out for someone like us.”
Made over by British set designer Gary Card, the same mind that first collaborated with the John Skelton-founded retailer when it opened in 2010 to envision its innovative shopping experience, and did so again in 2015, LN-CC 3.0 might just be his magnum opus. Taking small cues from his original retail set-up, and working alongside the in-house creative team to bring it to life, Card split the space into six stimulating rooms this time around, each with its own distinctive interior design. “Collaborating with Gary Card for the third time has been incredibly special. His vision, and ability to interpret the LN-CC DNA has resulted in what I feel is one of the best, if not the best, retail space in the world. This was the biggest undertaking since working on the original space, and by changing the whole dynamic, I feel it will be a space that is remembered,” says Crisp. “It has Gary’s flair as well as ours, all while being able to become the perfect amplifier for our partners. We wanted it to be curated and each room speak our brand portfolio while remaining distinguishingly LN-CC.”
Moving from the basement to the ground floor, the iconic LN-CC Tunnel is now the shop’s high-impact entrance – the gateway to its underground mecca. Harkening back to the original tone of the store that opened nearly 15 years ago, it’s given a vivid orange hue and lined with a selection of hero products. The Atrium, home to LN-CC’s core and conscious brands, comes next. Card set out to explore the interplay between texture, colour and material throughout the store, and here that dynamic creates a somewhat disorientating sort of architecture. Between corrugated green monoliths, the store’s top-performing product offerings from brands such as Miu Miu, Kiko Kostadinov, Y/Project and Diesel are displayed. Atrium is juxtaposed next to Callisto (named after Jupiter’s second moon), a truly subversive space which resembles the irregular landscape of the celestial body with curvaceous rugged walls and craters that glow with illuminated pops of lilac to frame LN-CC’s power brands and heritage houses.
Additional rooms include Midtarsal – a logic-defying cavern of endlessly undulating curves named for the pedal anatomy that it imitates and home to the season’s most coveted footwear – and Cobalt – the deep blue streetwear-dedicated space which hosts the latest drops from much-loved sneaker brands.
Known for being the best London shop with a bar (LN-CC stands for Late Night Chameleon Café BTW), its legendary club space – the last of the rooms – has evolved into L8TE, a multipurpose expanse dedicated to brand launches, key activations and takeovers. A popular hangout spot for London’s fash pack back in the day, the redeveloped dance floor is now wrapped from floor to ceiling in a high-shine iridescent skin and fitted with removable fixtures so it can transform on demand, as well as a fully customisable lighting system that’s built into the mirrored walls.
LN-CC features a highly curated collection of both luxury fashions and streetwear, as well as the work of some of the most exciting emerging talents and sustainable innovators right now – not to mention music, home and lifestyle goodies, and hard to find collectables like exclusive vinyls and first edition books. Cristian Musardo, LN-CC CEO comments: “LN-CC sets itself apart from other luxury retailers by offering a unique, highly curated assortment mixing the most innovative and risk-taking products from world-renowned brands while unearthing new ones. Not afraid of mixing high and low, the underground and the mainstream, the past and the future of fashion.” Big hitter brands like Bottega Veneta, Prada, Moncler, Maison Margiela, The Row, and Rick Owens are all on offer alongside exclusive product offerings from Our Legacy, Isa Boulder, Too Hot Vintage, Myco and Antenne Books. Walk in, just as you would with any old shop, and grab your goods, but if you’re after something a bit more personal, LN-CC is now also offering appointments for its new personal shopping service.
What’s more, the musical identity of LN-CC is something that has been woven into its fabric since its start. In the past, it has collaborated with artists, DJs and cultural connectors like Jamie XX, Shygirl and Eartheater to host events. Now partnering with Teenage Engineering, which has built a one of a kind sound system for the space, the East London store stretches the limitations of modern retailing in a curated, conscious, and considered way.
Going forward, LN-CC is betting on building a lifestyle. Crisp shares. “We want to build, this is not just about fashion but about a lifestyle and how LN-CC can become a true partner with place and purpose – unlike anything you can find elsewhere. Our club space L8TE will have programme of music events that are tailored to whoever is involved, spotlighting a unique community and audience that is properly authentic, for us it’s going to be all about world and brand building and how we can utilise the LN-CC to communicate in an unusual way.”
Photography courtesy of LN-CC. LN-CC is located at 18-24 Shacklewell Lane, E8 2EZ. Discover more here.
