Unlike most fashion brands, Comme des Garçons had never acted like a fashion house and that's evident when you enter one of its stores. The brand, created by the Rei Kawakubo, took avant-garde design to the world, deconstructing it and mixing in poetry. Retail experience, which on the other hand is what makes one visit to a store memorable compared with another, is what sets one store apart from another. When these two notions meet up there is a rare occurrence. But clothes aren't the only thing Comme des Garçons sells: it creates a shopping environment that calls into question the ways we consider space, presentation and identity. Here, the reasons behind the unique Como experience and what one might experience if they return to its stores later on are discussed.

Comm de Garçons, what does make them unique?

Asymmetry, raw edges and shapes, that defy the standard beauty rules, were the core of the rep of https://commedesgarccon.com/cdg/. Each collection is a question rather than an answer to fashion and not only that, but it's a question that has an answer. This attitude doesn't just remain on the catwalk, but it's right there in the store design. The brand's clothes are sometimes said to be “wearable art” and the same artistic vision is applied to all the brands' physical spaces.

Coach Mike is passionate about helping retailers achieve the Retail Experience Difference

Great Retail Experience: More than a nicely folded shirt and friendly staff. It's all about the atmosphere, the story and the feeling of a space. Like the stores of Comme des Garçons, the boutique shops employ unconventional counter designs, materials and art objects to challenge browsing and make it an act of exploration. The brand takes the liberty to let customers roam, explore and make their own decisions, rather than directing them down the beaten path of the aisles.

Integrating the two within the store design

The magic comes when Comme des Garçons' philosophy in design meets conscious decisions in the retail aspects. For instance, the idea of the Dover Street Market is to offer a kind of curated shopping experience, instead of a transaction commedesgarccon.com/cdg. There's tension here between the pipe and concrete, as well as between the mismatched furniture and the polished, high-end clothes, and between the unpolished walls and the equally unpolished pipes. This is a perfect blend that ensures each time you visit it feels like you're in a new creative universe.

Details that stand out from the senses of the story

Comme des Garçons retailers appeal to a greater degree than just the visual appeal. Lighting is used to create a focus on the texture of the garments, sound design creates an unusual atmosphere and even the lighting of the room, including the way it's arranged, enhances the brand's personality. These sensory layers are designed to collaborate in order to allow for an immersive retail rather than transactional experience. One thing customers frequently talk about when making a purchase is that they are leaving with a memory, which isn't a purchase.

How to make shoppers love you and your business more

Visitors come back toComme des Garçons stores as there is never a repeat customer experience. Retail offerings are continually re-designed, exchanged and changed - the design never gets stale, regular, predictable, or routine. Such randomness creates a lot of inquisitiveness and converts browsers into repeat customers, and fans who look forward to the next idea. When it comes to being disruptive, uniformity in its jarring vibes is its calling card.

The traditional luxury stores are unable to compete with Comme des Garçons Retail Experience

Traditional luxury retail is based on polish, symmetrical racks, predictable service scripts – and marble floors. That's definitely not the formula that Comme des Garçons applies; on this one, the rawness and deliberate imperfection are what they're going for. It's precisely this difference that makes Comme des Garçons retail experience truly unique. It isn't ostentatious in its approach, it is original, sincere and imaginative.
Looking forward to seeing it yourself! Explore a Comme des Garçons store or the nearest location of one of Dover Street Market's stores and witness the avant-garde design in action, transforming stores. Enter, take some time and see what you expect to find.

FAQs

So, what is special about Comme des Garçons compared to other fashion brands?
Part of its avant-garde, deconstructed philosophy of design, separates it from the mainstream fashion houses.
Is there a difference between Comme des Garçons' stores from season to season?
Yes, other places will turn over layouts and installations on a frequent basis.
What do you think Dover Street Market is?
It's a shop based on Comme des Garçons that's an amalgam of fashion and curated art shows.
Easy enough for the novice at Comme des Garçons?
It's open and the design is quite unusual, but it is welcoming.
What is the reason that these stores are still popular with customers?
The dynamic and interactive environment ensures that every visit is different, memorable and enjoyable.