Experiential Destination Store Opens in London's Tech City
"Commercial online and offline channels can be successfully integrated, though the harnessing of their respective strengths"
A new experiential retail and event destination launches with an exclusive event tonight in the heart of the design district of London’s Tech City.
The Clerkenwell Collection is an ‘omnichannel’ concept and the store will open with a curated selection of exceptional designer-makers and complementary brands.
These include tailor Bespoke HQ, (also designer and tailor for the official Aston Martin Collection), two recognised British jewellery artists, an exciting contemporary furniture house, a fine wine merchant, fashion accessory labels and a dedicated art gallery. The intention is that the symbiotic relationships of the businesses in the collection will create a ‘gallery-like’ shopping experience for visitors, all fully supported by an online presence, soon to be unveiled.
A mixed programme of regular in-store events in the calendar will also feature prominently. Spanning two floors, the lower of which has the ability to turn into a fully catered function area, the store will be able to host wine tastings, supper clubs, and Meet The Maker nights, to actively engage with its clientele. These events will make the ‘tactile’ process the centre of attention, so that customers can take home with them the complete story, ethos and approach taken by each designer-maker, as well as physical pieces.
Serial entrepreneur David J. Brown, the Co Founder and CEO of the award-winning online efficiency company Ve Interactive is behind this venture, together with his Thinkers HQ partners; a portfolio investment company that first took equity positions in the featured designer-maker businesses. Their collaboration will make The Clerkenwell Collection an exciting blend of creative disciplines and commercial and digital expertise.
Explains Brown: “The Clerkenwell Collection will cater to the current consumer return to an appreciation of quality workmanship, authenticity and individuality, as an alternative to the mass-produced and manufactured. The creative industries are hugely important to this country, both in economic contribution and cultural heritage, so we are delighted to be opening this experiential retail space as a platform for them.”
However, whilst most of the products are unique and involve exquisite craftsmanship, he also stressed that The Clerkenwell Collection is not about elitism, “The store is all about celebrating talent and quality, and the creation of a personalised, engaging experience for visitors.”
Thinkers HQ in partnership with Tech City native, Ve Interactive now hope to demonstrate how commercial online and offline channels can be successfully integrated, though the harnessing of their respective strengths and the incorporation of each into the consumer-buying process.
Located equidistant from the City and Covent Garden. Clerkenwell is a vibrant and trendy design district that boasts museums, art galleries, independent design boutiques and historic Hatton Garden, as well as the neighbouring arts institutions of Sadlers Wells, The Almeida Theatre and The Barbican. It is also home to many of London’s finest restaurants, with both Exmouth and Smithfield Markets on its doorstep.
Continues Brown: “We are excited to contribute to the halo effect of the other wonderful creative businesses in our environs, making Clerkenwell the perfect antidote to the West End.”
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About The Designers in The Clerkenwell Collection:
The destination store houses the following designers, some who have already had work placed in significant exhibitions and collected by private individuals: BespokeHQ, British tailoring; the contemporary furniture design house - Tree Couture; Maisha Handbags, fresh from an appearance at London Fashion Week; award-winning British jewellery designers Ruth Tomlinson and Jacqueline Cullen and the fine wine merchant, The Perfect Cellar.
Exhibited will be paintings by the celebrated late surrealist Spanish artist Juan Antonio Guirado, together with limited edition prints and accessories from Guirado Design, the fashion label created by his daughter Catalina. This is complemented by a wine cellar and tasting rooms showcasing some of the world’s premier wine, Champagne, cheeses and cigars and chocolates.
The Clerkenwell Collection
155 Farringdon Road
EC1R 3AD
+44 (0) 20 3675 8847
www.TheClerkenwellCollection.com
@The_Clerkenwell
Contact
For further information contact:
Kathy Heslop
Kathy.heslop@veinteractive.com
Tel: +44 (0)20 3137 5730
@veinteractive