hussein chalayan and puma make a deal

Puma's current "Retrieve-Retain-Revive" window

Now that Hussein Chalayan has become Puma's new creative director, as announced in WWD on February 29, it will be curious to see how the brand and stores evolve. Chalayan, avant garde fashion designer known for pushing the envelope (and also known for the envelope jacket Bjork wore (Post, 1995)), will design "all product categories -- footwear, apparel and accessories -- for Puma's Sport Fashion and lifestyle categories ... to be sold in select Puma stores, key concept stores, and shop-in-shops worldwide."

I paid a visit to the Puma store in Union Square, and had some fun speculating about what fixtures would be retained and what would be revived.



Retain: These display shelves, although a little bland, are similar in shape to the microchip elements on this dress from Chalayan's Spring 2007 Collection. The shelves just hang there doing nothing, however, unlike the dress, which morphs into different shapes ever so slowly.

Revive: In addition to the morphing, which is a really nice effect, we would like to see the shelves shoot lasers, like these dresses appear to. (The secret is Swarovski technology!)



Retain: Micro-stadium seating in the back of the store. The chalkboard wall is not really high-tech enough for Chalayan's tastes though.

Revive: Convert the space into a stadium-seat skirt like the one pictured here, and have models paint over the chalkboard in a performance piece that would ultimately be converted into a video loop and projected on the wall as a hologram.



Retain: The register area is all wrong, no matter how you slice it.

Revive: Change the imposing and uninviting corrugated steel to a material that is translucent and light-emitting, like the dress shown here from Chalayan's Spring 2007 Collection. Get rid of the boxiness, and opt for more inspiring organic forms, like circles. This dress could be used as the model for the new register area. Wouldn't you rather ring up your purchases in this environment?