UK heritage brand Ben Sherman opens New York concept store in Soho

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Jul 23, 2018

UK heritage fashion brand Ben Sherman is focusing its attention back on the US market and is to open a pop-up store in Soho, New York in time for the autumn and Holiday shopping seasons.

The pop-up, at 130 Greene Street will debut on September 1 and will stay open throughout the Holiday season, offering the entire Ben Sherman collection, from ready-to-wear to accessories, footwear and jewellery, as well as limited-edition pieces. 

And in line with the trend to make physical stores more experiential, the 2,000 square foot location will include a stage for live in-store performances, helping to reinforce the Ben Sherman heritage that has close links with the music world. 

Ben Sherman made its initial impact in the 1960s with a button-down shirt that became a must-have for a number of different British youth tribes.

And the shirt remains the brand’s reference item. In honour of this, the pop-up will offer a full-service shirt bar with the company saying there will be “hundreds of styles and colours to choose from.”

Ben Sherman continues to work on a variety of collaborations to boost its appeal to trend-focused youth, most recently teaming up with British fashion designer Henry Holland on a collection of unisex styles that received strong notices during London Men's Fashion Week.  

Select pieces from that collaboration will be available in the US with the NY concept store being the only location to stock the entire Ben Sherman X House of Holland capsule.

Michael DeVirgilio, President of Ben Sherman's parent company Marquee Brands, said: “After strong growth in other markets, we're now ready to begin rebuilding the US retail presence. 

“Our customer remains loyal and has been very vocal in demanding that we bring back US retail locations. We took the time to do our due diligence and decided to move forward with a unique non-traditional, long-term concept store approach, re-imagining the retail experience with an eye toward keeping it fresh and interesting by changing locations, redesigning the layout, playing with the look and feel from season to season. Each new concept store will have its own unique point of difference. The customers have spoken and we're listening.”

In addition to the shirt bar and Ben Sherman X House of Holland collection, the store will offer “monthly programming and activations ranging from a speaker series, influencer dinners and concerts to engage shoppers and create an interactive retail experience.”