Sweaty Betty has opened its first European flagship at No. 1 Carnaby Street in London

Fitness brand Sweaty Betty has opened its first European flagship at No. 1 Carnaby Street in London. The prominent 204 sq m store is located at the south entrance to Carnaby Street and is the result of the brand upscaling from its existing store on Beak Street where it has been a resident since 2002.

’19 years and over 50 shops later, I’m so excited to introduce our flagship: No. 1 Carnaby. We spent years dreaming up this concept, I have even handpicked all of the partners to ensure they had a similar value and ethos to the Sweaty Betty brand, to live a balanced life that goes beyond fitness,’ says Tamara Hill-Norton, founder of Sweaty Betty.

The shop is arranged over ground and basement floors allowing the brand to expand and offer its full clothing, accessories and equipment collections, as well as housing a studio space for exclusive wellness events, giving a wider customer experience.

‘Our brief was to design a location filled with fashion, food, fitness and beauty, where you could come with your friends do a workout, grab a smoothie bowl, shop and get pampered,’ says a spokesperson on the Sweaty Betty in-house store design team. ‘Design wise we wanted to encourage our customer to spend time in store, bringing the fun side of our brand alive with unexpected touches including neon and graphic illustrations. My favourite example of this is the lockers in The Studio; from the outside they are really minimal and chic, then once you open the door you’ll find a fun feminist quote hand-illustrated by Lo Parkin.’

The design team wanted to stay true to the brand using its signature grey tones and fluoro pops that it has become known for. The space is really industrial, so to take No.1 Carnaby to the next level, the designers used bright neon installations throughout the space inspired by the lights of Soho. In the shop area itself, the shopping experience has been simplified using blackened steel fixtures and touches of marble and concrete.

As the main concept of the space was to create an area where women would come and want to hang out, homely touches were added, including hanging plants, oak furniture and lots of cushions and rugs.

‘In retail spaces designers now have to think, is this Instagrammable? At Sweaty Betty we love motivational quotes, so you will notice these throughout the store; on a mirror, or a big neon, as they are a huge part of our brand. To ensure these stayed true to our look, we used stencilling for a premium, long-lasting finish,’ says the spokesperson.

‘Our visual merchandising in-store has really elevated our retail space, we love telling a story of the collection with a selection of beautiful imagery, typography and at the moment a vase filled with eucalyptus all displayed on a shelf like a collage. You’ll also see this reflected in the windows; to launch our new Power Leggings we’ve got three girls acting out the store through really fun props.’

The café area has a huge communal table and hanging chairs, to encourage customers to sit and enjoy the space. ‘We’ve tried to think of everything, from organic Bamford products in the showers to specially designed cups in Farm Girl to ensure the ultimate customer experience.’

Sweaty Betty joins other recent additions including Urban Decay, G.H. Bass and Estee Edit who have all chosen Carnaby for their first global or UK flagship store.