Various in-store installations for NikeLab

Conceived as a means of bringing about a relevant experience that connects people with a product devised for use in extreme urban weather conditions, visitors to the NikeLabs 1948 store in London encountered an actual in-store tornado. A system of fans created the vortex effect required and allowed the steam to be contained in wall of wind. Customers were able touch, play and break the tornados wind barrier, adding to the tangibility of the installation.

The prototype developed for the Shanghai store but not eventually realised in-store, was the experience of rainfall. Proximity sensors detecting users location triggered a combination of alternating strobe lighting and projected video content. When viewed through a trickling rain curtain the overall effect was one of frozen rain droplets with a backdrop of urban ACG video content.

For NikeLab 21M store in New York we placed suspended sheets of “smart fog” amongst the apparel that reacted to approaching guests, changing from transparent to foggy. Motion sensors were used to trigger an eerie techno-fog effect as well as the interruption of an electrical charge causing the repurposed security smart glass to switch from transparent to the natural cloudy state.

Essential to the project was the idea of confrontation and evoking a sense of wonder by inviting the visitor to interact with the respective weather condition specific to each installation. How often is one confronted with extreme weather conditions inside a store? Daan Lucas, managing director at Random: “We played with the notion of connecting to people in a surprising, relevant and emotional way. Another important element is time: It needs to ‘happen’. If you make an experience too complex, it takes too long for people to master.”