AF Vandevorst designers An Vandevorst and Filip Arickx are no strangers to retail, with four guerrilla stores to their name (each riffing on an ’army hospital’ aesthetic) unfolding years before a flagship location was even a twinkle in Arickx’s eye. The summer of 2014 saw the dream of a permanent bricks-and-mortar boutique become a reality in the heart of Antwerp, with a multi-level shop front that showcases their women’s ready-to-wear collections beneath high ceilings, back-dropped by a stark spiral staircase.
Softening the otherwise clinical atmosphere, architect Thomas Van Looij transformed the 130 sq m space with the help of acclaimed museum scenographer Bob Verhelst, whose finishing touches include a Cubist linoleum floor and a matching patchwork wall of blush-coloured leather - the same used in the brand’s iconic red cross-marked boots. In an exclusive personalisation service, devotees can opt for that cross (or their initials) to be marked out in a pavé of diamonds on white gold.
