Glue Store’s latest store at Wollongong Central, in NSW’s Illawarra, has a fresh look that has created a new DNA for the brand’s future stores.
Rob Newstead, head of retail operations at Glue, told Inside Retail PREMIUM the key to new stores is to look at the design for each and cater to the local community.
“The artwork in this store is evolving artwork, so what that means is it keeps the store looking fresh for the customer.
“Our customer is very sophisticated these days, they expect a really strong experience, and once they’ve experienced it a few times it’s good to add another layer to keep them interested and keep them excited,” he said.
Glue will look at bringing in new artists from the local community next year, with students from Wollongong University to contribute.
“It’s important that the store team works with their community to develop artists and people that are interested in the area – that’s what really starts to be a draw for the store.”
Glue rebranded in April in an effort to take a larger slice of the womenswear market. The revamp included a new logo as well as store refurbishments across the entire network.
The 450sqm Wollongong store is at the main entrance of the newly redeveloped Wollongong Central and was designed by Design Clarity, with an industrial theme in mind.
Wood, polished concrete, industrial fixturing and flooring, a recycled door feature wall, and LED light displays work together to create an industrial look.
Highlights of the design are the recycled door wall, which comprises of more than 50 doors reclaimed from timber yards and cleaned to create a feature. Another highlight is a green geometric LED light display behind the cash desk.
“We wanted a store design that really pulled you in,” said Newstead.
“When we were pitched the idea of going into Wollongong Central we were shown the concept design, and obviously being a store that was going to be the entrance to the mall, we felt that we would play on something that was really striking,” he said.
The store is broken up into different sections for men’s and women’s, men’s denim, women’s denim, and footwear, with more than 30 mannequins used throughout.
“Mannequin clusters are really important for us, we’re looking to reinvest into mannequins and updating our mannequins in the rest of our business.
“There’s so much you can communicate through mannequins and styling, it’s obviously a really important part of our business. The whole articulation we have through mannequins is so important because you can be creative with them, and they add great pause points in the store,” he said.
This story first appeared in Inside Retail PREMIUM issue 2025. To subscribe, click here.
