It’s like you read my mind! The coffee renaissance has been in my head for quite some time now, especially as brands in the beauty space have rampantly started to leverage coffee shop community building too (saie, summer fridays, etc)
summer fridays immediately came to mind for me as well! also really excited to see how the new blank street 'green room' delivers on their promise of partnerships
Very much agree that coffee/smoothies/etc in retail spaces help create community. It deepens the relationship with the brand and turns what could be a merely transactional experience into something more. Ghiaia Cashmere in Pasadena is another good example of this where the price point of the clothing is high but going into the space feels like going into someone's home. Also to some extent, One White Street did this with Rigor Hill as well.
This is such an interesting topic to me! Just yesterday, my husband and I were out walking through Berlin. We walked past the Lacoste store that has a coffee corner featuring one of our favourite roasters from Munich. Of course we walked in to check out the beans they had on sale. And what did I do? I started browsing the aisles with Lacoste clothes. I've never walked into a Lacoste store in my life but the coffee shop lured me in!
This is also a very interesting perspective from the interior design side as it’s a large undertaking to incorporate coffee - you need to add additional plumbing, millwork and equipment that is vastly expensive in a space that most likely didn’t have any in that location before as it’s a mercantile and not food primary. Great if it works - big risk if it doesn’t.
That’s a great point. I live by the Ralph’s in UES and while the coffee is fine the in-store experience is lovely. But you can’t go bc it’s just tourists taking pics outside.
Valid. The Ralph shopping experience in NYC is about as good as it gets.
Wild how they’ve made that transition to where I meet people that go to Ralph’s with no knowledge of the connection to the brand (no shade). A coffee shop that happens to sell clothes the same way Erewhon feels like a smoothie bar that happens to sell groceries. I feel like ALD could trend in this direction but a long ways away
Arguably ALD (I was once a big customer) is IMO facing a reckoning. It’s elevated price point post LVMH investment is alienating OG fans and thus it’s been sort of co-opted by the finance bro archetype who can afford it. I’ve no issue with raising prices personally, but the quality has not matched. There’s tons of really interesting menswear (Stoffa, MFPEN, Our Legacy) doing wayyyy more interesting things at comparable or slightly elevated price points. With ALD… you’re def buying the brand not the clothes. With Ralph, their OG, it’s def the opposite especially RRL and purple label.
My thoughts first went right to Ralph Lauren, who opened Ralph's coffee in 2014! ALD & S&R have both said in interviews how RL as a brand is a big inspiration for them.
All facts. I think ALD may be teetering on turning into a Kith. Yes, more revenue but with the sacrifice of being seen as cool/authentic. Not that Kith ever felt that cool imo.
The price is a huge piece. Feels like there’s a sweet-spot at a lower range that could be filled. Otherwise, what’s stopping someone from getting the Abercrombie clones of it all.
ALD has suffered a bit from lack of evolution in the product. Season over season is essentially the same 90s lookbook core offering. Tons of stuff that is timeless but how much timeless product can you sell once people have already filled out their closets with it? Potential negative revenue consequence of buy-less buy-better which is obviously a good thing from a consumer and planet perspective.
Their brand may be able to be strong enough to save them from this fate but interesting case study all around.
This one was a great read- coffee and community seem to go hand in hand w/ streetwear brands.
Leveraging your brand aura into new mediums [such as a $7 cold brew] continues to demonstrate that zillenials and brand loyalists alike will align with your brand when they can feel like they belong, especially when you can snap a photo in a swanky cafe that speaks to their target consumer’s aesthetic.
the whole clothing brand doing lifestyle started in japan decades ago. at least in the form of cafes to lifestyle annex shops
Ahhhh thank you for the added perspective here!
It’s like you read my mind! The coffee renaissance has been in my head for quite some time now, especially as brands in the beauty space have rampantly started to leverage coffee shop community building too (saie, summer fridays, etc)
summer fridays immediately came to mind for me as well! also really excited to see how the new blank street 'green room' delivers on their promise of partnerships
So true it’s really such a brand trope at this point
Genuinely wonder if selling coffee is the only way many stores have at making any consistent money right now?
Cash flow is everything
Very much agree that coffee/smoothies/etc in retail spaces help create community. It deepens the relationship with the brand and turns what could be a merely transactional experience into something more. Ghiaia Cashmere in Pasadena is another good example of this where the price point of the clothing is high but going into the space feels like going into someone's home. Also to some extent, One White Street did this with Rigor Hill as well.
Great article! About time until they’ll start hosting - we are seeing an awful lot of brand dinners too
This is such an interesting topic to me! Just yesterday, my husband and I were out walking through Berlin. We walked past the Lacoste store that has a coffee corner featuring one of our favourite roasters from Munich. Of course we walked in to check out the beans they had on sale. And what did I do? I started browsing the aisles with Lacoste clothes. I've never walked into a Lacoste store in my life but the coffee shop lured me in!
This is also a very interesting perspective from the interior design side as it’s a large undertaking to incorporate coffee - you need to add additional plumbing, millwork and equipment that is vastly expensive in a space that most likely didn’t have any in that location before as it’s a mercantile and not food primary. Great if it works - big risk if it doesn’t.
Love the read. Nailed coffee as an easy way to build a halo effect for brands and to bring people into retail spaces.
Like nearly everything, Ralph feels on the forefront of coffee as part of a world-building experience.
That’s a great point. I live by the Ralph’s in UES and while the coffee is fine the in-store experience is lovely. But you can’t go bc it’s just tourists taking pics outside.
Valid. The Ralph shopping experience in NYC is about as good as it gets.
Wild how they’ve made that transition to where I meet people that go to Ralph’s with no knowledge of the connection to the brand (no shade). A coffee shop that happens to sell clothes the same way Erewhon feels like a smoothie bar that happens to sell groceries. I feel like ALD could trend in this direction but a long ways away
Arguably ALD (I was once a big customer) is IMO facing a reckoning. It’s elevated price point post LVMH investment is alienating OG fans and thus it’s been sort of co-opted by the finance bro archetype who can afford it. I’ve no issue with raising prices personally, but the quality has not matched. There’s tons of really interesting menswear (Stoffa, MFPEN, Our Legacy) doing wayyyy more interesting things at comparable or slightly elevated price points. With ALD… you’re def buying the brand not the clothes. With Ralph, their OG, it’s def the opposite especially RRL and purple label.
My thoughts first went right to Ralph Lauren, who opened Ralph's coffee in 2014! ALD & S&R have both said in interviews how RL as a brand is a big inspiration for them.
Once again Ralph is the blueprint.
All facts. I think ALD may be teetering on turning into a Kith. Yes, more revenue but with the sacrifice of being seen as cool/authentic. Not that Kith ever felt that cool imo.
The price is a huge piece. Feels like there’s a sweet-spot at a lower range that could be filled. Otherwise, what’s stopping someone from getting the Abercrombie clones of it all.
ALD has suffered a bit from lack of evolution in the product. Season over season is essentially the same 90s lookbook core offering. Tons of stuff that is timeless but how much timeless product can you sell once people have already filled out their closets with it? Potential negative revenue consequence of buy-less buy-better which is obviously a good thing from a consumer and planet perspective.
Their brand may be able to be strong enough to save them from this fate but interesting case study all around.
Thanks for the conversation, y’all 🫡
This one was a great read- coffee and community seem to go hand in hand w/ streetwear brands.
Leveraging your brand aura into new mediums [such as a $7 cold brew] continues to demonstrate that zillenials and brand loyalists alike will align with your brand when they can feel like they belong, especially when you can snap a photo in a swanky cafe that speaks to their target consumer’s aesthetic.
Yes the easy shareability of a branded coffee cup also plays a factor
I welcome the coffee overlords personally, especially if they offer cold brew!
I’ll take a cold brew anytime
🤌🤌🤌
Coffee… it’s best street