{"id":204826,"date":"2022-06-07T12:57:27","date_gmt":"2022-06-07T11:57:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/theindustry.beauty\/?p=204826"},"modified":"2022-06-07T15:58:26","modified_gmt":"2022-06-07T14:58:26","slug":"the-interview-space-nks-ceo-andy-lightfoot-on-its-new-covent-garden-store","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theindustry.beauty\/the-interview-space-nks-ceo-andy-lightfoot-on-its-new-covent-garden-store\/","title":{"rendered":"The Interview: Space NK's CEO Andy Lightfoot on its first-ever double-level store"},"content":{"rendered":"

Space NK<\/span><\/a> has recently opened a new store at 3 Neal Street in Covent Garden. Making history for the retailer, the location is Space NK's first-ever double-level store. Spanning 2,000 sq ft, the upsized unit provides a bigger floorspace for its portfolio of products.<\/strong><\/p>\n

In an exclusive interview with TheIndustry.beauty, Space NK's CEO Andy Lightfoot speaks about the new store, what makes it different from its existing locations, why Covent Garden is a great area and more.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Before we talk about the new store, I'd love to find out a bit about yourself. How long have you been at Space NK and what were you doing before you joined?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I've been at Space NK for coming up to five and a half years and I've been CEO for just over three years. I joined originally to lead the ecommerce business, particularly a transformation project.<\/p>\n

I've had quite a varied background but I\u2019ve always been in retail. Prior to Space NK, I was at Arcadia. Before that I was at Amazon for about six years and I really grew with that business. I was the 103rd employee in the UK and left when there was around 4,500 in head office - a lot has happened in the last 12 years.<\/p>\n

So, what drew you into beauty and Space NK?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I've worked in lots of different categories including fashion, music, electronics. What draws me is companies with a story and with opportunity. When I joined Space NK, I was really convinced by what they were trying to do with the brand.<\/p>\n

I didn't really know a lot about beauty before, so it's been a voyage of discovery for me to learn about the products, the brands and the founders. But what I love about it is that, as a CEO and as a strategist, you can really feel the impact of what you're doing in this sector.<\/p>\n

This new store is Space NK's first double-level unit, but you had another store in Covent Garden before this right?<\/strong><\/p>\n

We did. This is a relocation. We had been there for about nine years, but we saw an opportunity to get into a better location. When we originally looked at this store, we came downstairs and it was a skate pop-up. Quite a lot of basements can often be a bit oppressive but we saw this space with these great industrial features. So, we said we wanted to keep this and it just felt like the opportunity to do something different.<\/p>\n

\"Space<\/p>\n

So, the aesthetic features of the new store were a big pull. Was there anything else that drew you into wanting two floors?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Space! It gives us twice the space. When we look at new stores, we're now looking at bigger spaces because our selection has expanded and we've got so many amazing brands that we need to make sure we've got the space for.<\/p>\n

Other than the double-level unit, is there anything else different about this store compared to other Space NK locations?<\/strong><\/p>\n

We took a lot of feedback over quite a long period to find out what our customers liked and what they didn't like about our store environment. One of the pieces we got feedback on, which was pretty universal, was that it felt a bit clinical. When you get big walls of shelves, it can be difficult to pick out where one brand ends and another brand starts. As packaging has got more colourful, this has become easier. However, with traditional white packaging, you can have a sea of white boxes.<\/p>\n

So, we've done a couple of things at this store to help. First, we've got a different floor. We've chose a lighter floor rather than our traditional floors that are dark oak. We put it in a herringbone too, which is a small detail, but it draws the eye-line through the store instead of the linear planking that we traditionally have. We have also used a warm accent colour on the walls. We've used pink to try and give a contrast to the white stands. If the walls were white, it would be a lot colder in the basement.<\/p>\n

We're also using a lot more imagery around the store and have changed the way we merchandise the brands. So, it's now much easier to differentiate where one brand starts and another ends.<\/p>\n

How do you decide what is featured in your stores?<\/strong><\/p>\n

It varies by store and we look at customer shopping behaviours and try and get our new brands into as many stores as we can too. However, even with these big new brands we have got to make sure we have good stock supply. So, we generally start small and then expand over 6-12 months.<\/p>\n\n\t\t