Outdoor Gear Company Wildcraft Appoints Dalziel and Pow

Bangalore-based brand Wildcraft has briefed brand and retail design agency Dalziel and Pow to design a new store concept that brings the emotional experience of exploring the natural world to life. The new stores are part of Wildcraft's mission to change India’s relationship with the outdoors.

Wildcraft was started by a group of adventure sports enthusiasts in the late 1990s with the aim to inspire the country’s urban middle classes to rediscover an affinity with the great outdoors.

Dalziel and Pow was tasked to look at how the staff and communications should perform in store, as well as designing the physical environment and merchandising systems.

The creative idea focused around ‘Sensorial Awakening’ – the space created is as much about exciting and informing curious customers as it is selling functional gear and apparel. Expect to see rope ceilings, real foliage, gobo lighting and full-scale graphics of jungle scenes, all of which create a camp-like atmosphere. The agency also experimented with mist effects and scent to create an immersive, multi-sensory environment.

Storytelling in store inspires the customer to explore a wide range of walks and outdoor experiences in their local vicinity. This is coupled with staff reviews and recommendations, as well as those of customers who have experienced them.

The build is currently underway at two sites, JP Nagar and Koramangala, Bangalore, with the Nagar store set to open its doors on 20th February.