Melbourne. Seoul. Amsterdam. Berlin city centre. The Australian premium cycling brand MAAP is expanding at a rapid pace. What do we have to do with it? We had the honour of building the first MAAP LaB concept store in Germany. LaB stands for ‘Life around Bikes’ – and that’s exactly what the progressive brand, founded in 2014 by Australians Jarrad Smith and Oliver Cousins, is all about. A label with a high fashion and lifestyle factor that is revolutionising the aesthetics of cycling.
Revolutions in retail? We love them! ‘We are very happy about the shop fitting of the first MAAP LaB in Germany! MAAP is one of the leading road bike and gravel clothing brands from Melbourne and has now set its sights on Berlin after the LaB in Melbourne and Amsterdam,’ says Chris Jirka, our project manager and account manager. The shop was designed by the Australian architecture firm CCA (Clare Cousins Architects). The technical development, furniture construction and assembly were carried out by Knoblauch.
And now it’s off to Berlin-Mitte, where amateur racers appreciate the value of fashionable cycling clothing and performance products. The MAAP store with its bike workshop flair emphasises the brand’s passion for cycling. Raw materials such as exposed concrete and bright, stainless steel epitomise the real thing. It’s clear that this is not just about selling, but about sharing passion and cycling culture.
Maap co-founder Oliver Cousins commented on the retail expansion in the industry magazine Textilwirtschaft: ‘We have always had the ambition to expand the LaB concept and create our own community and cultural centres around the world. We are therefore very excited about this next phase of expansion to further develop and give back to our growing global community.’
And how do communities work in store concepts? By making stores the hub of the scene – for example through special events and weekly bike tours. Life around bikes.
