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This timber department store only sells eco-products

Marui redevelopment, Tokyo, by Foster + Partners, Japan

Tokyo – In a bid to create a holistically sustainable retail experience, architectural firm Foster + Partners is planning a Tokyo-based retail development made entirely from timber. The nine-storey department store, located on the famous Shibuya Crossing, will be designed using materials and building techniques that reduce its carbon output.

As well as being an environmentally conscious structure, Shibuya Marui Department Store also aims to create a community of lifestyle brands which share the same sustainable values. The store's roof garden includes a café and restaurant, with room for an urban food farm in the future. By establishing such sustainable and ethical metrics in its choice of brands, the store tunes in to the ideas we explore in Criteria Retail, with retailers setting strict eco- or social criteria for the products they sell.

Elsewhere, we've been tracking the rise of greener retail developments, and the ways that such structures can benefit shoppers, workers and the environment on a wide scale. For more, discover Rewilding Retail.

Strategic opportunity

Leisure and hospitality venues should take note of this innovation when planning their eco-conscious futures. Beyond building sustainable structures, also reflect on the criteria you can create when working with suppliers

A couture coffee concept arrives in Paris

Momus, Paris

Paris – Just when we thought artisanal coffee might be losing ground, French company Momus is putting high-end blends back on the map. With a roster of creatives and specialists collaborating on different flavours, the company is on a mission to make coffee collectible.

Hailing from the fashion industry, Lionel Giraud, the company’s founder, is bringing the services and aesthetics seen in the luxury sector to the coffee market. Each coffee product is packaged in white and colour-coded boxes that resemble paperback books, communicating a more premium product. Customers who want to buy the coffee can also schedule a 30-minute consultation with the Momus in-house barista, where they have the option to make a customised blend for £39 ($47, €45).

Reviving the Craft Coffee Market, Momus is bringing couture coffee to life. ‘Even when you go to a three-star restaurant, you are likely to find a menu with 30 pages or more for wine, and then, at the end, you have one line: coffee,' explains Lionel Giraud, founder of Momus.

Strategic opportunity

While Momus’s packaging evokes paperback books, consider the potential for coffee companies to team up with artists, novelists or sommeliers to produce limited-edition blends

Vivrelle’s accessories showroom courts next-gen luxurians

New York – The luxury accessories club is opening a 14,000-square feet showroom and social club in Manhattan’s NoMad District, taking up residence near popular hospitality venues such as Ace Hotel. Forming an expansion of its accessory ‘borrowing’ membership model, the space offers members access to a lounge and workspace, with novelty elements such as a Vivrelle-branded claw machine inspired by traditional arcades.

In future, Vivrelle plans to host more immersive experiences, brand collaborations and VIP events at the club. Co-founder Wayne Geffen comments: ‘The goal is we want you to spend time there, get to know the products, get to know the brand… Everything from having a cup of coffee or having a glass of wine with another member and sitting around products and having a conversation with our team.’

Through this approach, the brand aligns with the retail strategy of creating Venues with Benefits – a trend we explore in Hyperphysical Stores. It also borrows from the automotive sector, where Supercar Clubs are welcoming affluent consumers to network around shared passions for rare vehicles, art, wines and whiskies.

Vivrelle, US

Strategic opportunity

Luxury retailers can take inspiration from this initiative and similarly create membership spaces that appeal to the interests of particular consumer groups. Consider partnering with hospitality brands to create immersive cultural experiences

Stat: Baby Boomers embrace the eco-benefits of e-bikes

JUMP by Uber

Although people might assume that older generations are more reliant on gas-guzzling cars, a recent report by mobility company TIER reveals otherwise. According to the research, in the UK, 49% of over-65s who use private or shared e-bikes do so to reduce their carbon footprint.

Indeed, the survey demonstrates a surge in demand for micro-mobility services among UK retirees. Some 24% of over-65s plan to use an e-bike for the first time in 2022, suggesting that 59% of this age group could be e-bike users by 2023. One of the key motivations for this age group’s adoption of e-bikes is the environment. According to the study, those over 65 are more likely (23%) than those under 65 (19%) to consider the carbon footprint of travel.

These findings are significant because they imply that older adults are interested in e-bikes and that they’re prepared to try new modes of mobility to help protect the environment.

Strategic opportunity

With accelerating interest in alternative transport among older generations, examine the opportunity to create products and services to make this demographic feel more comfortable on the streets