Dive Brief:
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Fast Retailing's Uniqlo has opened the second floor of its flagship Fifth Avenue store to sell a series of MoMA-approved, art-inspired items including t-shirts, bags, and jackets. Featured artists in the SPRZ NY line include New York darlings like Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, Jack Pierson, Jackson Pollack, and more. Some items will also be available at the museum.
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Fast Retailing’s Uniqlo has found great success in New York and has sponsored free Friday evening admission to the Museum of Modern Art for some time.
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The new in-store displays will be joined by Uniqlo’s first in-store coffee bar, a Starbucks.
Dive Insight:
Uniqlo seems to be trying out the Andy Warhol maxim: "Art is what you can get away with." The retailer offers fast-fashion basics at attractive prices, but it's not leaving its fortunes to the success of one strategy. Its partnership with MoMA has set Uniqlo apart, and now it is tapping that relationship for the utmost in artistic cool--a no-brainer for the New York location and the tourists who flock there. Even if Uniqlo doesn’t sell a whole lot outside of the Big Apple, this is a statement-making move and the SPRZ NY pieces are sure to become collectors' items once their limited time is over.
