Features
The Rolling Stones & Bravado Open Flagship Store On Carnaby Street In London
BEN STANSALL/AFP via Getty Images – Carnaby Street is pictured in central London, on February 25, 2010.
The street is closely connected with fashion and music.
The Rolling Stones and Universal Music Group’s merchandise and brand management arm Bravado announced the opening of a new flagship store on Carnaby Street, the famous fashion district in London Soho.
– The exterior of the new Rolling Stones store on Carnaby Street, London
Rendering.
Dubbed “RS No. 9 Carnaby,” the new store will open Sept. 9. It will feature “all the hallmarks of the iconic band and include exclusive new fashion and merchandise under the ‘RS No. 9 Carnaby’ brand,” according to the announcement.
The online shop will open on the same day. The collections include “exclusive and contemporary collaboration pieces for fans of all ages, including men’s, women’s and children’s fashion and accessories.
“A special glassware has been developed with Baccarat engraved with the Rolling Stones tongue. The store will feature chairs and scarves from The Soloist, and raincoats and hats from premium Swedish raincoat brand Stutterheim,” according to the announcement.
The store will also introduce ‘Stones Red,’ the official color known from the band’s iconic logo. An entire collection available in the store will feature the red that has been developed by color company Pantone.
The shop fit follows the brand colors of red and black and the glass floor features lyrics, while the fitting rooms are adorned with iconic album artwork. Needless to say, the Rolling Stones’ music will play in the store a lot.
The shop window will also feature a soundwave installation that will wrap around the double fronted windows in the store, made up of individual pieces of powder coated aluminium that form the soundwave of the opening to the Rolling Stones iconic track “Paint It Black.” It’s a unique, stand alone piece of art, and a “world first,” according to the press release.
A comment from the band reads: “Soho has always encapsulated Rock ’n’ Roll so Carnaby Street was the perfect spot for our own store. We are confident this exciting project that our friends at Bravado have created will be an unrivalled experience for everyone to come to London and enjoy.”
Bravado CEO Mat Vlasic commented: “With this innovative partnership, the Rolling Stones add yet another cultural touchpoint to their rich legacy. RS No. 9 Carnaby is the result of years of planning and decades of building one of the world’s most recognized brands. It creates a destination where fans can connect and immerse themselves in the music, style and spirit of one of the world’s most iconic and beloved bands.”
– Pop stars meet in Carnaby Street, London to become founder members of an anti bowler hat group to be known as the bowler hat brigade.
Among the groups were The Animals, The Kinks, The Rolling Stones, The Walker Brothers, The Merseybeats and The Who, Sept. 1, 1965.
This is not the first fashion endeavor by the Rolling Stones and Bravado by any stretch: In 2017, they unveiled a Parisian-themed collection with the soccer club Paris Saint-Germain and Colette. The collection spanned apparel, footwear and accessories, including collaborations with other brands, which led to key items like Nike Air Max sneakers or a motorcycle helmet.
In 2018, UK retail chain Selfridges featured a collection of Stones-themed items, including clothes, the band’s first ever vinyl box set, as well as limited edition items like a pool table.
The Selfridges collaboration coincided with The Rolling Stones “No Filter” European tour, which opened in Dublin, May 17, 2018. Thee tour sold 755,345 tickets across 14 stadium shows, grossing $119 million according to Pollstar box office reports.
Last year, the Stones and Bravado opened pop-up shop at Maxfield L.A. to coincide with the start of the U.S. run of “No Filter”. The tour was set to continue through July 2020, but had to be postponed for obvious reasons.
The Rolling Stones have history with Carnaby Street. Back in 1965, they joined other U.K. pop stars to found an anti bowler hat group, which was known as the bowler hat brigade. Aside from the Stones, The Animals, The Kinks, The Walker Brothers, The Merseybeats, and The Who featured in the bowler hat brigade.
Ahead of Christmas 2012, and the band’s “50 & Counting” tour, large parts of the street were clad in Rolling Stones-themed decorations. There was also a pop-up store featuring merch and memorabilia.
Claude Gassian – The Rolling Stones
Music and fashion icons.