urban outfitters oxford street, london

As I mentioned in a previous post, I had planned a trip to London for researching my honours project. I booked my train a couple of weeks ago to give myself time to prepare (panic about getting lost/trapped with a pigeon on the tube). When it dawned on me I might need emotional support in case either situation arose I asked one of my oldest friends to come with me to help navigate. What I didn't realise is that he hadn't been to London since he was 13 (TEN YEARS AGO) and was therefore even more stressed and useless than me. Thankfully we didn't get lost and after some speculation over at what was classed as peak times (4.30am - 9.29am fyi), whether I would appear a complete tourist with my printed off tube map and how to get through the ticket barriers, we were on the tube to Oxford street.
My main aim was to get into Urban Outfitters to get some photos of the interior and get an idea of the space that I'm using for my project. We came out of the underground and there it was, like something out of a hipster's dream.

 The store has three huge windows running along the side of the store which looked typically Urban Outfitters, young and trendy with graphic prints. They had the graphic design running through all the windows, even the smaller sash windows on the first and second floors.

 Once we ventured inside I resisted the urge to shop and had a look around. The first thing that struck me was the lighting. I managed to photograph my two favourites. The first image below was in the basement between the mens section and the music displays. I loved the mix of colours and sizes and how it acted as a focal point within the room. I always like that although Urban Outfitters are really merchandise heavy on their fixtures they don't mind having other points of interest in their stores.

The second fixture is actually one of many similar ones which were hung at different heights all the way up the stairs, from the basement to the second floor. I think the mix of lights is so interesting and provides so much light within the space without using standardised lighting like some stores do.

There is so much floor space in this branch, it has 4 floors, but I felt as though there was so much crammed into all the fixtures, until I reached the second floor. This is where the fitting rooms are along with displays for some of the designers that Urban Outfitters stock. I felt like this floor was such a breath of fresh air as there was more open space and the rails and shelves weren't brimming with merchandise like the other floors. They also had wall space to display images and a little section where customers could put on headphones and listen to a playlist made by Urban Outfitters. 

On the second floor they also had space for customers to shop online, I'm assuming if something isn't available in store then staff will refer customers to this space. I think along with the little music section this showed how Urban Outfitters could incorporate digital in store to enhance customers' experience. The brand has a heavy social media presence and it was nice to see some of it reflected in store.