Vanilla was established in 1981, predominantly as an online female fashion retailer. Having built up a strong reputation through e-commerce and concessions, the brand wanted to continue to deliver trend-led, yet affordable options for females of all ages, by taking the next step into physical retail.
rpa:group helped deliver their first foray into bricks and mortar with a Bluewater flagship, followed swiftly by a Lakeside store, where Vanilla began to truly develop their design identity in earnest. The treatment to the shopfront, signage, and interior fixtures and fittings was agreed, and custom-made halo illuminated wall bay modules were developed to highlight product and add interest and depth to the store. The colour pallet employed within the store was defined and signage packaged formulated, utilising the strong imagery Vanilla has from their online presence.
Since then, rpa:group has continued to provide a full range of services including Architecture, Project Management and Quantity Surveying, to help progress the new store rollouts, with various stores opening in strategic locations such as Lakeside in Telford, Bury The Rock, Newcastle and Merry Hill.
The success of these has seen more new stores being opened for the brand, and also includes a fast-track relocation of the original Bluewater store to new 2,300 sq ft premises and a new 4,800 sq ft. store opening in the White Rose shopping centre in Leeds. For this project, the landlords are dividing the retail space that became available after the relocation of the Marks & Spencer, and which Vanilla is taking a large share of. rpa:group have carried out initial surveys and provided initial designs and are in the process of developing detailed construction information to allow the project to be put out to tender.
Vanilla’s success is also seeing it develop a physical presence in The Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, with a 4800 sq ft store at the Belfast Castle Court Shopping Centre and a 6,300 sq ft store at Dublin’s Jervis Shopping Centre.
As Vanilla continues to go from strength to strength, rpa:group is proud of our long-standing relationship with the brand to continue to deliver their vision in the realm of physical retail.
