Tucked into 'The Intersection' – a new retail concept at Melbourne Central featuring two giant glass ‘cubes’ – is Oliver Tilsley's most recent retail venture, a stand-alone store for newly-launched accessories label Who is Hue.
The store isTilsley's second major foray into retail, after the successful establishment and sale of his custom-made t-shirt business T-Bar in June of 2009, and it is the product of a six-month design collaboration between Who is Hue managing director Tilsley and store designer Luke Stokes.
“We worked tirelessly over this [six month] period to ensure that the store was unique and set itself apart from the existing accessory retailers who occupied the market,” Tilsley says.
“We felt that what was already existing in the market were a number of retailers who were driven by creating a very feminine space, so the focus of the design was on creating a retail environment that had a masculine undertone associated to it. Basically, we wanted to create an environment that didn’t alienate men who were shopping with their partners or who were looking to purchase a gift for their girlfriend without feeling like they had just been injected with estrogen.”
Tilsley and Stokes seem to have achieved their mission. The first Who is Hue store is almost androgynous, but with a slight masculinity to it, starting from the floor up. The mix of vinyl flooring, sourced from Sweden, and geometric tiles imported from Turkey in shades of grey and charcoal immediately set the scene, and are complemented by mirrored ceilings, black light fixtures and dark wood furniture.
“These geometric tiles really set the tone of the brand and the in-store experience,” Tilsley explains. “We decided that we would make them a feature and subsequently wrapped the 'play tables' that form part of our concept in these tiles to form a strong impact from outside the store without relying on heavy visual merchandising and mannequins.”
These functional fixtures, which Tilsley refers to as 'play tables', have replaced the need for mannequins, along with strategically placed steel piano keys and wooden drawer units that allow for the store to constantly change in appearance without removing or replacing fixtures. It also matches the brand motto to a tee, according to Tilsley.
“The motto behind the product and store design has always been “simple, playful, functional,” he says.
The product, designed by Tilsley and manufactured by Who is Hue, consists of a collection of bags, ranging from all-size clutches to 'carry-alls', as well as a small range of small leather goods including wallets and coin purses. Tilsley also plans to introduce a range of travel accessories with a focus on overnight and travel bags towards the end of the year. Prices start under $100 and rise to $300 max, with the majority of our product sitting around the $200 mark.
Tilsley believes it is this combination of product, price and an alluring store concept with a twist which will set Who is Hue apart as a fledgling brand.
“There is a very noticeable gap between entry level players such as Colette Accessories and mid-tier brands such as Mimco and Oroton who have let margin overshadow innovation. But overall, it is the price point for the quality and construction of Who is Hue product along with the masculine undertone of the retail environment which makes our store unique.”
