The Zap, Create Your Own Cap store at The Stratosphere Hotel in Las Vegas sells one thing (custom monogrammed caps), but the store design concept is anything but one-dimensional.
"The primary design objective was to portray a current, high-tech, contemporary environment that combines fun and creativity with an interactive custom product, a cap," explains Tony Horton of T L Horton Design Inc., Dallas, which created the store design and fabricated the custom fixtures and signage.
"The image of the store and its graphic was designed to communicate excitement, immediacy and quality," Horton continues.
The maple store front is accented in black and adorned with 14 ft. columns and headers with brushed stainless steel rings. A cartoonish, black-and-white logo, also designed by T L Horton, repeats above each of the three, 11 ft. doorways. Each logo is 30 inches tall and is dimensional.
Down lights spotlight the logo as well as the caps displayed in the custom cases at the store's entrance. The exterior display cases are maple with a stainless steel kick plate.
The maple finish and black trim on the exterior are carried inside the store. Perforated metal shelving, powder coated black, is mounted on one wall and suspended by vertical poles, functioning both as a decorative and practical feature for merchandise display.
"The black shelves that display our caps inside the store are beautifully illuminated," says chain owner Steve Kranich. "We sell a lot of sample caps from these."
"Create your own cap" signage of vinyl letters is mounted to a maple veneer sign that is supported on stainless steel and black posts. The signage leads shoppers to the interactive design area, where monitors give immediate feedback of the personalized cap designs.
Mirror on the interior side walls gives the space a larger feel, and the reflection adds light and visual activity to the store. The lighting throughout the store spotlights the merchandise and adds a theatrical feel to the environment.
"The store's flow is perfect for consumer ease, and the three-door entry and the three selling stations maximize our production ability," Kranich says, adding that sales at the Stratosphere store average $1,000 per sq. ft.