News & Insights

From Ibiza to Bath via New York and Seoul, delegates at the World Retail Congress were taken on a whirlwind tour of some of the world’s most innovative new retail spaces as experts highlighted the stores setting new global benchmarks. John Ryan, Managing Director of Newstores, showcased a series of standout openings that are redefining what great retail looks like through bold design, immersive experiences and smarter use of technology. Among the highlights was Spanish fashion giant Zara’s recently opened store in Osaka, which Ryan said is “like a zen Buddhist temple”, pointing to its calming interior design. Spread across four floors with multiple rooms and a striking café, the store offers customers a different kind of shopping experience. In the UK's Bath, Marks & Spencer’s latest outlet was also praised by Ryan.

“It’s one of the best stores they opened last year,” he said. Spanning more than 7,700 sq m across four floors, the store uses visual merchandising techniques such as true-to-size screened images and pictures of footwear in place of traditional signage. Ryan also highlighted Uniqlo’s latest store on Fifth Avenue in New York City, a site that has previously housed a bank, Joe Fresh and The North Face. “If you get down that way in the near future, I would recommend paying it a visit,” he said, while highlighting the T-shirt collaborations with the Museum of Modern Art. Other examples included Nespresso’s largest standalone store on Fifth Avenue, fashion retailer Bershka’s latest opening in Ibiza, H&M’s striking concept store in Seongsu, Seoul, and Waitrose's new branch in Newbury which offers "digital and human service in combination," said Ryan. He also praised Primark’s new home furnishings store in Manchester: “They’ve done a pretty good job in Manchester. The neat trick about it is, it doesn’t feel crowded.”