Cult Swedish fashion label Acne Studios now has a standalone store in the Little Red Dot. Situated at #B2-81/83 The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands, the glass-encased boutique sits prominently opposite the canal and beside the rain oculus of the mall.
Prior to the store launch, the label, founded by creative director Jonny Johansson in 1996, was accessible to customers here via multi-label boutiques like Club21 and other online luxury stockists. Since its founding almost three decades ago, Acne Studios has evolved from being a denim specialist – Johansson created 100 pairs of raw jeans within the first year of launching the label – to being recognised for its experimental flair, effortless cool and counter-establishment spirit.
Architect Christian Hallerod, who was behind the design of the Singapore store, describes the space as having “a strong visual impact but at the same time is fragile and see-through thanks to the clear glass sheets.”
The opening of the store here marks the brand’s first outpost in the Southeast Asian region, and signals its growing physical presence in Asia, which includes markets such as China, Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea. Media reports state that the brand – said to be worth US$285 million (S$385 million) – is also boosting its awareness through buzzier store openings, bigger advertising pushes (cue the Fall/Winter 2022 campaign starring Spanish music phenom Rosalia) and high-profile hires (former Dazed editor-in-chief Isabella Burley joined as the brand’s chief marketing officer earlier this year).
Jonny Johansson (above) started Acne Studios as an independent label in 1996, with just 100 pairs of jeans, created for his inner circle of friends and family.
Indeed, the Singapore store is the proverbial icing on the cake for Acne Studios in 2022. It recently celebrated its 10th-year anniversary of showing in Paris Fashion Week with a splashy Spring/Summer 2023 show at Palais de Tokyo. Riffing on the theme of a wedding, the event was held in a surrealist pink-hued scene filled with candelabras made from seashells and giant boudoir-inspired seats, while the guestlist included industry heavy-hitters such as Kylie Jenner and Emma D’Arcy.
The dreamy scene from the Acne Studios S/S ’23 show during Paris Fashion Week.
For the Singapore store, Swedish design studio Hallerod was roped in. The result is a minimalist space heavily influenced by the tech-meets-industrial style of Meccano, the model construction system that exposes its structure to the spectator. Meanwhile, long-time Acne collaborator and British furniture designer Max Lamb was behind the custom blob-like seating, which took cues from the organic silhouettes and curves of the Spring/Summer 2023 collection. As a nod to its local setting, the furniture and bundles of fabrics decorating the hollow glass walls in the store windows of the Singapore store, feature hand-dyed batik textiles.
The primitive looking blobs of furniture by British designer Max Lamb are wrapped in hand-dyed batik fabrics.
Industrial design fiends will also be thrilled to spy on the numerous iconic objects peppered throughout the store. Clock the grayscale rug by Knut, the shiny Marmorino walls, industrial Radiator light system designed by Benoit Lalloz, and the custom mannequins from Daniel Silver, which have been christened Khadija, Jody, and Valerie.
