Melbourne-based luxury menswear brand, Christian Kimber recently opened a new flagship store in Melbourne CBD, bringing in interior designer, Brahman Perera to build a retail space designed to elude a sense of a ‘home away from home’.
British Australian designer, Christian Kimber launched his label in 2016 from his Armadale apartment with the support of his wife, Renuka. Today, the label has three retail stores across New South Wales and Victoria, over 10 staff, and a client list of household Australian names.
At the heart of the new retail experience in Melbourne is a Samsung 85-inch QC series Professional Display to showcase local content and art upon entering the store. The display brings dynamic storytelling, complementing the brand’s vision, deepening customer engagement, and elevating the shopping experience.
The brand wanted to build on its sensory experience, which reflects Christian Kimber’s relaxed yet refined design philosophy, by incorporating a dynamic audio visual component to elevate the customer experience, while maintaining its comfortable yet refined atmosphere.
“We wanted to incorporate a large format display into the space to touch every sense of the customer. Customers walk in and they smell eucalyptus, lemon myrtle, and sandalwood, they feel the texture of the timber and wool carpet flooring, and they are served a home-brewed coffee. It’s all about building a space that’s alive and vibrant and the Samsung display helps us do that,” Christian Kimber co-founder, Renuka Kimber said.
Working with Christian Kimber, the Samsung Professional Display team identified the 85-inch QC series Professional Display as the ideal solution due to its ultra-slim design and 4K resolution display, coupled with Dynamic Crystal Colour technology and powerful audio performance. As the slimmest UHD display in Samsung’s Professional Display range, the QC’s minimalist design blends into the store’s décor as a natural extension of the space.
“We approached Samsung because, for us, when we think about the best screens, we think Samsung. I’m a member of the National Gallery of Victora Women’s Association and I’ve seen Samsung’s displays used for a range of incredible video art, which is what we wanted for the store. Samsung was top-of-mind, and the display we have is perfect for bringing our flagship store’s aesthetic to life,” Renuka Kimber added.
Christian and Renuka partnered with director and long-time friend, Alex Naughton to develop a short film capturing iconic Victorian landscapes from coastlines to Mornington Peninsula wineries.
The Samsung 85-inch QC series Professional Display’s Smart Calibration feature showcases the brand film in the exact colours that Naughton intended. The display can run content for up to 16 hours a day, seven days a week. The seven-minute film typically plays on repeat at the store’s entrance which features floor-to-ceiling mirrors.
“The screen is probably the most visually impactful element of the space. It allows us to do something different and creative you don’t see in many menswear stores. It also helps us keep the store feeling fresh because we regularly change the display to showcase new collections or lifestyle videography. It’s one of the first things people notice when they walk in, and they always mention it,” Renuka Kimber said.
The success of the project will see Christian Kimber extend its partnership with Samsung in the future, with similar visual display solutions for future stores and other technology such as tablets and point-of-sale systems.