First Look: Outdoor outfitter Filson’s New York flagship
Filson has brought a little bit of the Pacific Northwest to Manhattan.
The brand founded in 1897 as an outfitter for Gold Rush prospectors headed for the Yukon has opened up its second outpost in the Big Apple, a flagship in the Union Square neighborhood. The 6,000-sq.-ft. space showcases Filson’s full product line, ranging from men’s and women’s apparel to bags, luggage and accessories, along with a mix of handcrafted specialty products from a variety of makers.
The store has an outdoor, rustic ambience. The entryway features a reclaimed and refabricated 1890s-era Douglas Fir barn from Ashland, Oregon, which serves as a trellis centerpiece within the space. (The barn was dissembled and shipped to Canada, to be processed by Spearhead, which designed the trellis. It was put back together in New York over a two-week process and a 3D imaging system was used to overcome obstacles.) Filson is believed to the first store of its kind to have such a large trellis built solely out of reclaimed barn wood, noted Schimenti Construction Company, which served as general contractor for the space.
“The unique design of this new flagship location will help Filson provide its customers with an incredible experience every time they enter the store,” said Matthew Schimenti, president of Schimenti Construction Company. “This was a truly collaborative effort and we are proud to have partnered with Filson and its team to realize their dynamic vision for the space.”
Filson commissioned several Pacific Northwest artists to create unique art for the space, bringing nods of the brand’s sense of place to life. These include a 14-ft. chainsaw-carved wolf sculpture by Jeffrey Samudosky, a 3D wood-carved wall-mounted sculpture with a contemporary take on Northwest indigenous carvings by Aleph Geddis and a stained-glass piece by David Fjeld.
“Filson New York Flagship stands for so much beyond a brick-and-mortar retail store; this represents a new space for people to discover what the Pacific Northwest and the great outdoors means to them,” said Alex Carleton, chief creative officer of Filson. "Our products and merchandise simply exist to further that exploration. Throughout the process of designing this store, we looked to those places – museums, parks and historical sites – to inspire us. The result is a well thought out, meticulously designed space that allows people of all walks of life to understand what it means to be a part of the Filson brand."
The opening of Filson's Union Square flagship bookends a notable East Coast expansion for the brand in 2018, which opened stores in Boston and Washington, D.C., earlier this year. Filson now operates 17 full-price stores and two outlet locations globally, 14 of which have opened in the last five years.
The brand founded in 1897 as an outfitter for Gold Rush prospectors headed for the Yukon has opened up its second outpost in the Big Apple, a flagship in the Union Square neighborhood. The 6,000-sq.-ft. space showcases Filson’s full product line, ranging from men’s and women’s apparel to bags, luggage and accessories, along with a mix of handcrafted specialty products from a variety of makers.
The store has an outdoor, rustic ambience. The entryway features a reclaimed and refabricated 1890s-era Douglas Fir barn from Ashland, Oregon, which serves as a trellis centerpiece within the space. (The barn was dissembled and shipped to Canada, to be processed by Spearhead, which designed the trellis. It was put back together in New York over a two-week process and a 3D imaging system was used to overcome obstacles.) Filson is believed to the first store of its kind to have such a large trellis built solely out of reclaimed barn wood, noted Schimenti Construction Company, which served as general contractor for the space.
“The unique design of this new flagship location will help Filson provide its customers with an incredible experience every time they enter the store,” said Matthew Schimenti, president of Schimenti Construction Company. “This was a truly collaborative effort and we are proud to have partnered with Filson and its team to realize their dynamic vision for the space.”
Filson commissioned several Pacific Northwest artists to create unique art for the space, bringing nods of the brand’s sense of place to life. These include a 14-ft. chainsaw-carved wolf sculpture by Jeffrey Samudosky, a 3D wood-carved wall-mounted sculpture with a contemporary take on Northwest indigenous carvings by Aleph Geddis and a stained-glass piece by David Fjeld.
“Filson New York Flagship stands for so much beyond a brick-and-mortar retail store; this represents a new space for people to discover what the Pacific Northwest and the great outdoors means to them,” said Alex Carleton, chief creative officer of Filson. "Our products and merchandise simply exist to further that exploration. Throughout the process of designing this store, we looked to those places – museums, parks and historical sites – to inspire us. The result is a well thought out, meticulously designed space that allows people of all walks of life to understand what it means to be a part of the Filson brand."
The opening of Filson's Union Square flagship bookends a notable East Coast expansion for the brand in 2018, which opened stores in Boston and Washington, D.C., earlier this year. Filson now operates 17 full-price stores and two outlet locations globally, 14 of which have opened in the last five years.