Paul Smith to join line-up at Coal Drops Yard

Paul Smith has confirmed he will join the retail line-up at the new Coal Drops Yard development in London's King's Cross, which is set to open this autumn.

Sir Paul's approach to retail is to create a unique store in each location in which the brand opens, and for King's Cross he is promising "a series of exciting spaces" that both respect and contrast with the Victorian industrial architecture of Coal Drops Yard.

Central to the shop’s design will be a juxtaposition of modern features with the listed architecture where the vaulted brick ceiling and walls will be retained. The Paul Smith "twist" will be added through surreal spaces built like capsules contrasting with the traditional brick space.

A room for men’s suiting will be covered in thousands of Japanese 1 Yen coins, a nod to Paul’s long-standing relationship with Japan. Linking the rear room to the women’s room will be a striking blue tunnel with a rubberised playground floor. While the rear room will reflect Paul’s history as a shopkeeper in Nottingham when he would change his shop stock regularly, bringing back unusual objects such as toys from his travels around the world to present something new and interesting to the local customers.

This rear space will feature a rotation of store concepts, from the exclusive Japanese Red Ear collection, to product launches linked with events in the city such as Design Week and Frieze, creating a contemporary version of a local shop.

“As a man who’s travelled in and out of King’s Cross and St Pancras for many years and seen it change from a very run-down and sad area to become a vibrant and beautifully restored part of the city, it’s with great excitement that I’m opening a new shop there later in the year," Sir Paul said.

Craig White, Project Director at Argent, said Smith was one the project's muses, as it has sought to curate a unique retail line-up. "[...] his classic style with a twist has informed our approach to identifying our ideal partners, and is indeed mirrored in Heatherwick Studio’s reimagining of the Victorian coal drops themselves. His signing is a magnificent addition to the scheme, and we look forward to welcoming shoppers to the store when it opens later this year.”

Coal Drops Yard has been reinvented by Heatherwick Studio, which has combined a contemporary design with the surviving grand brick viaducts, cobbled streets and ironwork of the Victorian Coal Drops that were situated on the site, dating back to 1851. The renovated quarter is a new shopping area set to open in King’s Cross in autumn 2018. It is located adjacent to Granary Square, near King’s Cross and St Pancras International stations, and forms a key part of the wider regeneration of King’s Cross.