Kennedy Nolan Designs Sydney Store

Kennedy Nolan has brought a unique energy to Up There Athletics’ first Sydney store, located on Oxford Street, Gadigal Country. The Melbourne practice’s design for the store focuses on creating a haptic experience, emphasizing the sense of movement and mobility.

The store’s interior features a rubber soft-fall floor, which gives a springy and bouncy feel underfoot, similar to an athletics track or a new pair of trainers. This detail sets the tone for the rest of the store, which is designed to engage all the senses.

Above the floor, a flat, dull olive green washes across the walls and ceiling, providing a deliberately unfussy backdrop for the merchandise. The fixturing is loose and mobile, with shelving and rails shifting between horizontal and angled arrangements around a grid of fluorescent red posts.

The store’s design is intended to heighten the sense of mobility as customers move through the space. The red posts shift in parallax as you pass, while the mannequins suggest motion without moving at all. The diagonal lighting pulls the eye and body forward, creating a sense of kinetic energy.

According to Patrick Kennedy, the design is “a haptic experience rather than a visual statement,” emphasizing the feeling of movement through space. This approach is reflected in the store’s palette, which stays tertiary and low-key, and the lighting, which is warm and inclined to dim rather than showroom-bright.

Kennedy Nolan’s design for Up There Athletics’ Sydney store represents a smart bit of positioning for a brand that straddles two worlds: serious performance gear and a customer who cares about the feel of a space. Rather than dressing the store up as a gym or boutique, the designers have built something that behaves like the sport itself – kinetic, unpredictable, and entirely about the body moving through space.

They have created a space that is understated yet effective, allowing customers to focus on the merchandise and the experience of moving through the store.

As customers move through the store, they are surrounded by a series of subtle cues that encourage movement and exploration. The fluorescent red posts and cobalt blue mannequins work together to create a sense of dynamic energy, while the diagonal lighting guides the eye and body through the space.

The store’s design is not just about creating a visually appealing space, but about crafting an experience that engages the customer on a deeper level. By emphasizing the sense of mobility and movement, Kennedy Nolan has created a space that is both functional and immersive.

In the midst of this dynamic environment, customers can focus on finding the right gear for their needs, surrounded by a space that is designed to enhance their experience.

Overall, Kennedy Nolan’s design for Up There Athletics’ Sydney store is a successful blend of form and function, creating a unique and engaging experience for customers. The store’s focus on sensation and mobility sets it apart from other sports retail environments, and provides a compelling example of how design can be used to enhance the customer experience.