H&M approached Universal with a brief to turn their buildings into a collection of eye-catching iconic destination stores that would stand out on the international retail landscape and communicate the brands global and progressive approach to design.

Applying our experience in the high-end luxury retail sector we sought to develop a unique architectural identity that would give the new international H&M flagship stores presence in a new and highly aesthetic and design conscious market.

To tie in with the brands collaboration with Comme de Garcon at the Harajuku store, Universal used the opportunity to remove H&M from it’s traditionally black-box retail culture, fill the interior with natural light and create a dialogue between the interior and the surrounding city. In this instance the folded screen was redeveloped as a series of custom white metal slats with a polished inset, allowing the facade to subtly change and shimmer with movement both internally and externally.

Internally, Universal designed a dramatic four-storey staircase that uses the slat screening to create a separate environment that forms a visual and physical vertical connection to the rest of the store.  The staircase inhabits a given volume but inflects, shifting its floor plan between floors, creating a series of dynamic spaces that draw the customer up through the store.

Universal helped launch H&M in Japan with the Ginza and the Harajuku flagships, both of which opened to unprecedented success and continue to outperform targets. Over 4000 people queued for the opening of the Harajuku store and still receives an average of 20,000 customers per day, a year on from opening.

We at Universal work to build lasting relationships with our clients and are taking H&M forward with a number of new installations across the globe. The completed projects to date stand testimony to our extensive list of contacts in international manufacturing and fabrication that mean we can deliver complex bespoke solutions in any territory at any scale.