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    Attitude of “permanent renewal” drives retail success says Colette co-founder Sarah Andelman in Liganova talk

    Promotion: Sarah Andelman, co-founder of Parisian concept store Colette, has discussed the unexpected approaches needed to succeed in the future retail landscape in a talk hosted by Dezeen and brand retail experts Liganova during Milan design week.

    Andelman was in conversation with Dezeen’s chief content officer Benedict Hobson at brand and retail experience company Liganova’s Salone Club, a live event held in a lounge overlooking the rooftops of Milan.
    The event explored the topic of the future of retail and how brands can create relevant and meaningful experiences in stores through curation and collaboration, with Andelman drawing on her decades of experience helming Colette alongside her mother, Colette Roussaux.
    The talk included Mathias Ullrich, Ben Hobson and Sarah AndelmanThe Paris boutique – opened in 1997 and widely considered one of the most influential stores in the world – brought together fashion, streetwear and beauty products. The space also included a gallery, bookshop, cafe and “water bar” serving more than 100 varieties of bottled water.
    Mother and daughter kept things fresh by changing the windows and displays every week, and Andelman said that it was the fact that they would always “renew ourselves” that meant people would come back to see what’s new.

    “We would always push and try to introduce things we haven’t seen yet, and this permanent renewal,” she said. “It was a mix of brands and mix of events. I think this energy helped create what Colette was.”
    Andelman is the co-founder of Parisian concept store ColetteColette closed in late 2017 when it was almost at the height of its popularity and Andelman says going out on a high when the time felt right was “the best decision we took”.
    The next year she founded her consulting agency, Just an Idea, which has worked with brands including Valentino and Nike to produce unique and tailored retail experiences.
    Andelman considers collaboration one of the keys to current and future retail success but says it has become harder than ever to make an impression in the space.
    Sarah Andelman was in conversation with Ben Hobson at Liganova’s Salone Club at Milan design week 2022″Now there are so many unexpected collaborations that you’re not surprised anymore,” she said. “It’s really everywhere.”
    “We had so many collaborations of brands with artists, brands with brands, I think now maybe we’ll talk to writers, to architects, to hospitality, to find new ways of developing a new format of collaboration to bring a new dimension to the classic collaboration,” she continued.
    Curation is also key according to Andelman, who urges curators to embrace their idiosyncracies without fear. It is something she and Roussaux were known for at Colette, which presented high-end labels alongside undiscovered emerging designers.
    Andelman spoke in front of an audience of Liganova partners, clients and friends”For a good curator I think you need knowledge, you need to know what exists, you need to be super curious, to have to go to multiple trade shows, showrooms, anything,” she said. “You hear, you read, you follow information, you really just follow your instinct, to not try to duplicate something you have seen somewhere else.”
    In the future, she believes the real world and metaverse will come to intersect in the retail space, requiring continuity of approach from brands.
    At the same time, there will continue to be a place for bricks-and-mortar stores, especially “retail experiences” that capture the senses and are almost museum-like in their approach.
    The live talk took place in a rooftop lounge looking out over Milan”I think bricks and mortar are here to stay if there is this extra touch to make it the opposite of the internet, this human service, maybe a drink, this extra service that you won’t find online,” she said.
    “I think it’s fantastic for brands like Jacquemus to have a concept like its pop-up at Selfridges,” she said. “It’s a focus on one bag. You feel the water, you hear the sound.”
    “In an experience, I think you need all of these: the sound, the smell, the touch and the fact that it’s not a system that they will duplicate in Tokyo, New York, but they really take the time to design something different for each market,” she continued. “The challenge is to keep it short and to renew and do something completely different next time.”
    To learn more about Liganova, visit its website.
    Milan design week 2022
    Salone Club took place on 8 June as part of Milan design week 2022. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.
    Partnership content
    This article was written by Dezeen for Liganova as part of a partnership. Find out more about Dezeen partnership content here.

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    Watch a talk on post-pandemic design with Gaggenau at Milan design week

    Dezeen teamed up with luxury kitchen appliances brand Gaggenau to host and stream a talk about the design world’s response to the coronavirus pandemic with Dara Huang and Michel Rojkind during Milan design week 2022.

    Moderated by Dezeen’s editor-at-large Amy Frearson, the talk explored how design responds to crisis with innovation, how designers can foster resilience in difficult times, and the increased interest in local manufacturing, entrepreneurship, and the design of communal and interior spaces in the past two years.

    Watch a talk on designing better kitchens with Gaggenau at Milan design week

    The panel featured architect and designer Huang, who is founder of Design Haus Liberty, and Rojkind, founder of Mexico-based architecture firm Rojkind Arquitectos.
    The talk took place in the conservatory of Milan’s historic Villa Necchi Campiglio, where the brand created a 360-square-foot interactive installation called A Statement of Form to showcase its highest-grade appliances.
    Dara Huang is the founder of Design Haus LibertyHuang founded Design Haus Liberty in 2013. The studio has offices in London and Hong Kong, and was awarded three RIBA awards in its first three years as a practice.

    She also launched lighting brand DH Liberty Lux, and co-founded Vivahouse, an initiative that turns disused commercial spaces into co-living units.
    The daughter of a Taiwanese scientist who emigrated to the USA to work for NASA, Huang has a masters degree in architecture from Harvard University. Before founding Design Haus Liberty she worked at Herzog & de Meuron in Basel and Foster + Partners in London.
    Projects by Design Haus Liberty include Villa Mosca Bianca on the shore of Lake Maggiore in Italy, and a cluster of apartments in Shoreditch, London.
    Michel Rojkind, founder of Rojkind ArquitectosMexican architect Rojkind founded Rojkind Arquitectos in 2002. Born and raised in Mexico, Rojkind studied architecture and urban planning at Universidad Iberoamericana.
    He founded Rojkind Arquitectos in 2002. One of the studio’s recently completed projects is a concert hall on the Gulf of Mexico, built for the philharmonic orchestra of Boca Del Rio. Other projects include the renovation of Mexico’s National Film Archive and Film Institute and the Liverpool Department Store.
    The talk takes place at Milan’s historic Villa Necchi CampiglioThe talk was the last in a series of three hosted by Dezeen in collaboration with Gaggenau running 7-9 June, which were all moderated by Frearson.
    During the first talk, which took place on Tuesday, designer Søren Rose, BIG’s director of interiors Francesca Portesine, and Foster + Partners’ head of industrial design Mike Holland discussed sustainability and longevity in design.
    Yesterday, Dezeen hosted a talk about designing kitchens that form “the hub of the home”, which featured a panel including Dada’s director of product development Andrea Molteni and designers George Yabu and Glenn Pushelberg.
    A Statement of Form is on show between 7-11 June during Milan design week, daily from 11am to 5pm. To visit, register at www.gaggenau.com. You can watch all the talks live on Dezeen here.
    Milan design week 2022
    A Statement of Form is part of Milan design week 2022, which takes place from 6 to 12 June 2022. See our Milan design week 2022 guide on Dezeen Events Guide for information about other exhibitions, installations and talks taking place throughout the week.
    Partnership content
    This article was written by Dezeen for Gaggenau as part of a partnership. Find out more about Dezeen partnership content here.

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