EuroShop 2026: The Record Store

Designing the Stand at EuroShop 2026

EuroShop 2026 offered the opportunity to present a clear point of view about the evolving role of physical retail, using the stand as a space to communicate ideas as much as projects. Positioned in Hall 12, Booth A46, Stand 19, the design of the environment was approached as a physical expression of how retail spaces can create discovery, atmosphere and meaningful engagement at a time when technology increasingly shapes how customers search, browse and purchase.

As digital platforms continue to grow more sophisticated in handling transactions and predicting intent, physical retail is naturally evolving into something more experiential and culturally expressive. Stores are becoming environments where brands communicate perspective, create moments of exploration and invite customers to spend time within the space. With this shift in mind, the stand was built around a concept that continues to hold cultural relevance across generations of shoppers and collectors: the record store.

Why We Still Love a Record Store

The record store captures a kind of discovery that feels increasingly valuable in contemporary retail.

Entering a record store rarely begins with a fixed plan. Visitors move through the shelves, scanning covers, pausing when something catches their attention and gradually uncovering items they may not have been actively searching for. Browsing unfolds through curiosity and atmosphere, guided by taste, curation and the personality of the space itself.

This environment creates a sense of exploration that encourages people to spend time discovering music, artwork and stories connected to the collection. The experience becomes layered and memorable, shaped by interaction with the environment and the objects within it.

For retail environments today, this model of discovery offers a compelling perspective. Carefully curated spaces can encourage exploration, build engagement and introduce customers to ideas, products and brands that may not have appeared in a targeted search. The record store demonstrates how retail environments can create cultural connection while allowing discovery to unfold naturally.

Bringing the Record Store to Life

The stand translated this concept into a physical experience that visitors could explore at their own pace.

Projects were presented as album covers, transforming case studies into objects that felt familiar, tactile and collectible. Visitors could browse the projects at their own pace, moving through the display as they might flip through records in a store and discovering work organically as their curiosity led them through the collection.

Each album cover contained embedded RFID technology that activated a short overview of the project when lifted, sharing the brief, the solution and the commercial result behind the work. The interaction created a simple but engaging way to experience the projects, allowing visitors to explore them through movement and touch while listening to the story behind each one.

The combination of tactile browsing and embedded digital storytelling created a rhythm within the space that felt intuitive and engaging. Visitors moved freely through the stand, exploring projects in the order that interested them and building their own understanding of the work through interaction with the environment.

Why Curated Discovery Matters

The increasing influence of algorithms on how people search, browse and buy products has reshaped expectations around speed, relevance and convenience. Digital platforms are highly effective at identifying patterns and guiding customers toward items that match their preferences.

Physical environments offer a different kind of value. Carefully designed spaces can introduce context around products, present ideas through storytelling and create moments where customers encounter something unexpected. When environments are curated with a clear perspective, they encourage exploration and extend the amount of time people spend engaging with a brand.

Curated discovery supports deeper engagement because it allows customers to move through a space gradually, uncovering products, stories and experiences as they go. The record store remains one of the most recognisable examples of this type of environment, illustrating how atmosphere, curation and interaction can transform browsing into a meaningful experience.

A Moment of Recognition

During EuroShop 2026, the stand was awarded Best Stand at the Creative Retail Awards, recognising the clarity of the record store concept and the way it was brought to life through the design of the space and its interactive elements. Visitors were able to browse the album-style case studies, lift them from the display and trigger the project stories through embedded RFID technology, creating an experience that encouraged exploration and engagement throughout the stand.

An encouraging moment to see the concept resonate not only with visitors across the week, but also with the wider retail and design community.