Ecco closed out its 60th anniversary celebration in style with the opening of its first-ever New York flagship, in Manhattan’s SoHo neighborhood. It is part of a relaunch of the brand’s 16 global flagship locations.
“Ecco is in good company in SoHo,” says Deniz Erda, recently appointed head of Ecco US. “It’s one of the few locations in the world that we call a heart of retail, and New York is a key market for the brand. Having a store here allows us to expand even further in the area as well as meet new potential partners.”
Designed to welcome and inspire, the 3,250-square-foot store, located at the corner of Broadway and Grand St., resonates with Ecco’s democratic, inclusive vision of the modern family, also the theme of its current marketing campaign. It features the brand’s full range of footwear and accessories as well as limited-edition items that will be available only at the SoHo location. Current exclusive capsules are by RAL7000 Studios and Peter Do. “The store also features our limited-edition Hobo bag in Ecco Apparition Leather,” Erda says.
As for the décor, the store pays homage to Ecco’s core values of innovation, ambitious design, sustainability, and community. For example, display podiums tiling calls to mind Jutland brick, a nod to the brand’s Danish heritage and headquarters. Aluminum, a key material in Ecco’s manufacturing processes, is a recurring motif within the store as well. And coinciding with its sustainable and ethical ambitions, plastic is minimized with durable leather innovations used for interiors, like terrazzo-style upcycled leather tiling and counters upholstered with tactile memory foam leather. Last but not all, customers are invited to lounge on oversized Ecco leather floor cushions.
The store was designed in partnership with Stamuli, a Swedish studio made up of creatives, architects, and technical experts that specializes in interior design for the fashion and retail sectors. As such, the layout gives merchandise ample space to shine and be seen, according to Erda. “It’s a perfect space to highlight our core competencies in leather, innovation, and design,” he says.
A bonus is how the store is serving as a test lab for the brand. Ecco has already discovered that higher-priced niche products perform particularly well with New York customers. “We can now collaborate even more with our New York retail partners to drive the new look and feel of Ecco,” Erda says, citing its NRL Collection, a 15-piece capsule from new creative partner, Natacha Ramsay-Levi. Nordstrom was one of the first retailers to introduce the collection in its New York flagship. “If we can establish and grow demand in SoHo, we’ll continue to drive business for both Ecco and our partners,” Erda says.
