NIKE A’ONE SU’25 RETAIL DESIGN DIRECTION

This year I had the immense honor of Design Directing the Nike North America Retail launch of the Nike A’ONE, the highly anticipated signature shoe for WNBA AllStar and 2 X Champion A’ja Wilson.

The brand creative was infused with her favorite colors and dripped with her accolades, style and swagger, so I made sure to push the develop environment to include jewelry inspired materials and forms that celebrated her status as a champion, and presented the shoe as the centerpiece of the experience.

The objective was to develop a multi tier retail directive that would apply this bold and unapologetic approach to Nike Direct stores like Las Vegas, Chicago, Soho, NYC House of Innovation and the Grove in Los Angeles-as well as our partner doors such as Dicks Sporting Goods and Footlocker

Nike Las Vegas became the pinnacle expression of this launch, as A’ja Wilson plays for the the Las Vegas Aces and chances were high that she would attend the store on the day of the launch for a media opportunity. The Store inside Caesars Palace has a massive “players lounge” with 40 ft ceilings and flanking wall panels for apparel and footwear. We created a series of custom display elements like Innovation and Athlete tables that tell the story of the Behind the design , and Hoodie Vitrine that calls out the details that made it unique.

Nike Soho became the stage for another pinnacle expression, with a unique set of characteristics. Multiple windows that allow for visual merchandizing and bold imagery, as well as a long footprint which allowed for a consumer journey that led from a basketball and footwear tunnel, through to customs pedestals, mannequin platforms and storytelling tables and ultimately to the footwear and try on wall.

in Chicago, where we designed the facade as well as the first floor. The store already had stunning white basketball chandeliers from a previous project, so we took the opportunity to light these with the A’ja Signature pink that ties to the shoe itself, and affect the outside lighting to compliment them. Inside the store, we designed the Initiative zone with a custom footwear wall telling the innovation story of the A’One and custom mannequin platforms that showcased A’ja’s signature line of apparel, all surrounded by the bold and emotive brand imagery.

Smaller executions were created at NYC Nike House of Innovation and the Grove using key elements to grab the customers attention and present the footwear and apparel. While smaller in scale, they held equal importance and were crafted with the same level of detail and substance.

A huge thanks to Jenny Tondera and Tim Rupp for their guidance, creativity and support. Anna Fulton, Kara Cederberg and Chelsea Kopacz for their tireless efforts to manage and produce the project across multiple doors, James Nelson, Tom and the team at Rosie Lee for their incredible design work and partnership, and our build / install partners for obsessing the details.