The best way to admire the exterior of just-opened Arc’teryx Burrard Street is on approach from the south headed towards the North Shore mountains. It’s designed to emulate the Stawamus Chief in Squamish, an ode to the North Vancouver-based outdoor apparel and mountaineering company.
In fact, every bit of the store’s 3,200-square-foot interior space is influenced by nature using zinc and granite details, serving as a clean backdrop to showcase the complete Arc’teryx product line.
As you enter, the first bit of eye candy is the open skylight and lighting fixture that appears as a series of closed and open triangular forms of white flat tubing, an aesthetically-pleasing combination.
The downtown Vancouver location (at 813 Burrard Street, a couple of doors south of Robson) carries Arc’teryx’s full line of outdoor product including backpacks, footwear and climbing equipment. Along with these well-known classics, Vancouver customers will also have access to Veilance, a technical urban collection tailored for city environments.
The shop is sectioned off to include men’s and women’s clothing, accessories, packs and footwear, plus a community space with seating, a bank of video screens showing manufacturing of their products as well as a social chalkboard with store news and a large map of local trails, inviting discussion for outdoor enthusiasts of all abilities.
Customers and outdoor organizations are invited to engage with the brand and leverage Arc’teryx for both education and inspiration. In addition, there’s an onsite warranty-and-repair bar, to ask questions or to resolve Arc’teryx product issues.
[Arc’teryx employees Gosia Nowinka and Josh Barringer]
At last week’s media event, a product making station was set up for customizable Arc’teryx wallets, local favourites Granville Island Brewery produced a special Arc’teryx 5.15 Onsight Cascade Dark Ale for the occasion and a DJ spun tunes while drinks and canapés were passed around the store.
[Jon Hoerauf]
Arc’teryx president and general manager Jon Hoerauf welcomed guests, proud of the new location. In total, this brings the company’s retail space count to five, including stores in North Vancouver, Kitsilano, Toronto and Montreal.
Arc’teryx Equipment, one of the fastest-growing outdoor equipment brands in the world, plans to expand that number in the future, with the goal of becoming the world’s largest global outdoor brand. Non-watermarked images courtesy of Arc’teryx.
