New Store debuts at the Dutch Design WeekNew Store debuts at the Dutch Design Week

Kindly hosted by Eindhovens’ Residency For The people, a space well known for supporting experimental design projects and activations, the reimagined store model came to life through a week of unique economic exchanges between visitors and designers. Stocked with Brogen Berwick’s Sea Bass, Arthur Guilleminot’s Piss Soap and Arnout Meijer’s Black Marble, the store invited the design week visitors to turn towards not only to their wallets, but to their phone battery or urine for means of payment. While the three designers (selected via an open call), each approached themes of regenerative retail, and the value we attach to a certain products in a different way, their projects came together in offering an alternative type of consumer-product relation.

Framed through custom modular furniture built by Os_Studio and Jeroen Wand, the three test products engaged in an intimate interplay with the infrastructure of the venue. Throughout an evening at the new store, consumers were prompted to read about the journey of the fish on their plate, harvest instead of flush their urine, and put their smartphone to use for the practical necessity of light.

With a bustling open night declaring the new store ‘open for the business’, the project attracted numerous visitors turned curious customers throughout the week, marking the first New Store a surprising and successful experiment for all involved.

Imagine a shop where being a consumer helps, rather than harms, the environment. Nieuwe Instituut presents New Store to rethink the concept of the ‘product’ and explore alternative forms of exchange. Within this multi-year project, Nieuwe Instituut is collaborating with the International Architecture Biennale Rotterdam (IABR) and research consultancy The Seeking State. Together, we will explore how retail can make a positive contribution to environmental and social processes in the long term.