Rain Compact Store, the Concept of the Month

Minimum sales area, very limited products and no inventory. In Copenhagen, the Norwegian outdoor clothing brand Norwegian Rain opened its first 20 sq.m. store in November, offering only 6 models of raincoats (2 for men, 2 for women and 2 unisex models, between €700 and €1,000 each). Created in 2009 by Alexander Helle and T-Michael, in Bergen, one of the wettest cities in Europe, the brand offers clothing especially developed for rough weather, all under a Japanese influence with a minimalist aesthetic. With this Compact Store, the brand introduced manufacturing on demand to reduce overproduction and optimise commercial performance per square meter. Customers can discover the Rain brand and try the different products, placing an order by scanning the product label. As this showroom has no stock on site, the order is then delivered within 3 days (or 6 weeks for customised versions, also available to order). Convinced of the success of this new business model, which offers operational advantages of less expensive sales area, lower rent and fewer costly sales people, all generating higher margin, the business aims to launch up to 20 identical shops in the near future.