Published on 4 December 2025 by ISAD — School of Design in Milan

The Gyakusou Nike Undercover Lab shop design project, developed as part of the ISAD Milan curriculum, demonstrates how a retail environment can translate the ethos of a high-performance running collaboration into a spatial narrative. Rooted in the intersection of sport, fashion, and urban culture, this concept store reimagines the conventional sportswear boutique as a laboratory for movement, experimentation, and sensory engagement. The design challenges students to consider how brand identity, materiality, and customer flow can merge into a cohesive architectural statement that feels both futuristic and grounded in the raw energy of the street.

Conceptual Framework: The Lab as a Metaphor

The project draws its primary inspiration from the Gyakusou line itself—a collaboration between Nike and Japanese designer Jun Takahashi of Undercover, known for its meticulous attention to detail, technical fabrics, and a philosophy that treats running as a meditative, almost ascetic practice. The term "Gyakusou" translates loosely to "running in reverse" or "wrong direction," suggesting a deliberate departure from the mainstream. This notion of counter-flow becomes the guiding principle for the spatial layout: instead of a linear, predictable retail path, the store unfolds as a series of interconnected zones that encourage visitors to wander, pause, and discover products in unexpected sequences.

Students were asked to think of the shop not merely as a container for merchandise but as a laboratory where ideas about movement, performance, and identity are tested and displayed. The lab metaphor extends to the use of modular display systems, exposed structural elements, and semi-transparent partitions that recall scientific apparatus. The result is an environment that feels both clinical and poetic—a place where the precision of athletic engineering meets the ambiguity of artistic expression.

Spatial Organization and Customer Journey

The floor plan is organized around a central "runway"—a slightly raised, elongated platform that cuts diagonally through the space, echoing the trajectory of a runner through an urban landscape. This runway serves multiple functions: it acts as a circulation spine, a display stage for featured products, and a subtle wayfinding device that pulls visitors deeper into the store. Along its edges, low-profile shelving and hanging rails are arranged in staggered formations, creating visual permeability while maintaining distinct product zones for footwear, apparel, and accessories.

At the rear of the store, a more intimate "recovery zone" offers seating, hydration stations, and a digital wall displaying real-time data from running apps—a nod to the quantified-self culture that underpins modern athletic practice. This area is deliberately softer in materiality, with acoustic panels and warmer lighting, providing a counterpoint to the harder, more industrial front-of-house. The transition between these zones is marked by a change in floor texture, from polished concrete to a rubberized surface reminiscent of an indoor track, reinforcing the narrative of movement and rest.

Material Palette and Sensory Experience

The material selection emphasizes contrast and tactility. Raw concrete, brushed aluminum, and expanded metal mesh dominate the structural elements, evoking the utilitarian aesthetic of gymnasiums and industrial labs. These are balanced by unexpected touches of warmth: a wall clad in vertical timber slats, a ceiling installation of stretched fabric that diffuses light like a running singlet, and custom-made display plinths wrapped in technical mesh fabric sourced from sportswear production.

Lighting plays a crucial role in shaping the sensory experience. Rather than uniform illumination, the design employs a layered approach: cool, high-intensity spotlights over product displays mimic the harsh clarity of a starting line, while ambient LED strips tucked into floor recesses create a subtle glow that guides movement after dark. In the fitting rooms, programmable lighting scenarios allow customers to test garments under different conditions—daylight, dusk, and artificial stadium light—underscoring the performance-oriented nature of the collection.

The store is not a static object but a dynamic system—a machine for experiencing the intersection of body, garment, and city.

Integration of Brand Identity and Graphic Language

A key challenge for students was to integrate the dual identities of Nike and Undercover without resorting to overt logo placement. The solution lies in a refined graphic language that borrows from both brands' visual codes: the iconic swoosh appears only as a debossed pattern on concrete walls, while Takahashi's signature graphic motifs—abstracted botanical forms and distorted typography—are translated into perforated metal screens and vinyl floor decals. This approach respects the intellectual property of both partners while creating a cohesive, original environment.

Digital interfaces are seamlessly woven into the physical space. Interactive mirrors in the fitting rooms allow customers to view product information, check availability in other sizes, or see how garments perform in simulated weather conditions. A central touchscreen table, shaped like a topographical map of a running route, enables visitors to explore the Gyakusou collection's seasonal narratives and the design stories behind key pieces. These technological elements are presented as tools for exploration rather than gimmicks, reinforcing the lab concept.

Sustainability and Adaptive Reuse

In line with contemporary design education, the project emphasizes sustainability through material choices and construction methods. The hypothetical site is an existing industrial building in Milan's evolving periphery, and students were required to preserve as much of the original structure as possible. Exposed brick walls, concrete columns, and steel roof trusses are left untreated, their patina telling the story of the building's past life. New interventions are designed for disassembly: display units are bolted rather than welded, partitions are made from recycled aluminum frames with interchangeable fabric panels, and all lighting fixtures are specified as low-energy LED systems.

The concept also addresses the lifecycle of a retail space. The modular design allows the store to be reconfigured for different seasons or even repurposed as a gallery or event space with minimal waste. This forward-thinking approach aligns with the broader shift in retail from permanent flagship stores to flexible, experiential environments that can adapt to changing consumer behaviors and brand strategies.

Educational Context and Learning Outcomes

As a student project at ISAD, the Gyakusou Nike Undercover Lab shop design serves as a capstone exercise in the retail and exhibition design curriculum. It requires students to synthesize skills in spatial planning, material research, lighting design, branding, and user experience. The brief was developed in collaboration with industry professionals, ensuring that the project reflects real-world constraints such as budget, building codes, and brand guidelines while still allowing for creative exploration.

The project also encourages critical thinking about the future of retail. Students are asked to consider how physical stores can compete with e-commerce by offering experiences that cannot be replicated online—tactile engagement, social interaction, and immersive storytelling. The resulting designs, including this one, demonstrate a sophisticated understanding of how architecture can mediate between commercial goals and cultural meaning. Other notable projects from the same cohort, such as Ahuir340 and its detailed explorations in Ahuir340 - Image 12, showcase the breadth of approaches to similar challenges.

In conclusion, the Gyakusou Nike Undercover Lab shop design exemplifies ISAD's commitment to producing designers who are not only technically proficient but also conceptually rigorous and socially aware. By transforming a retail space into a laboratory for movement and identity, the project offers a compelling vision for the future of sportswear retail—one that is as much about the journey as the destination.

Written by ISAD — School of Design in Milan