Vans reopens London flagship with new retail concept and giant skate ramp

Vans has reopened its flagship store on London's Oxford Street, boasting a "one-of-a-kind" skateboarding installation.

Originally opened in 2019, the store has been transformed into a "next-level" retail and community destination, celebrating the cultures that made Vans what it is today – skateboarding, music and art.

As part of this, the new concept reflects the footwear and apparel brand's skate DNA through "elevated" and "functional" design, exclusive product assortments, and regular event programming to create "a fully transformable space for the London community".

Most notably, the store showcases skateboarding culture through a fully transformable skate ramp, which will be used for regular skate lessons, demos and events by the Vans skate team and local skate schools. The installation will also be fully merchandised with interchangeable glass modules when not in use as a skate obstacle.

In fact, the entire space can be evolved to support the different cultural moments that Vans will present on a regular basis, from hosting kids lessons and skate demos to live music and art exhibitions.

The concept takes a radical approach to contemporary retail design, adopting a strategy that reduces the store’s storage space requirements by over 50%, in turn increasing the commercial space substantially.

It also offers a curated environment for the brand's footwear and apparel collections and is the first owned retail location in Europe to stock its 'OTW by Vans' category, previously only available at select partners in the region after first launching in June.

Exclusive drops will be available, including a series of "Innit" tees and skate decks as a playful nod to the local slang, as well as some of Vans’ most sought-after collections from previous years.