"Retail is a breakthrough exploration of the relationship between consumer culture and architecture, showcasing the creative collaborations between global brands and their architects. Over the past decade, retail architecture has taken center stage in contemporary design discourse, and Retail offers a unique tour of the venues for the universal pastime of the twenty-first century: shopping." "Retail describes the contemporary flagship as an essential conduit in the transmission of desire and a dynamic agent of citymaking. The new temples of style challenge old ideas about the exclusively commercial function of retail spaces. The shops featured in this volume accommodate a wealth of non-shopping programs - including full restaurant functions (Prada, Tokyo), exhibition spaces (Helmut Lang, Paris; Vitra, New York), and interactive environments and kinetic installations (Emporio Armani, Hong Kong; Michael Guillon, London) - promoting activities that add value to the shopping experience of the modern consumer as they enhance the reputation of a global brand." "This volume showcases the most exciting and innovative work by world-renowned architects for high-profile clients around the globe, including Rem Koolhaas and the Office for Metropolitan Architecture (Prada, New York and Beverly Hills): Frank Gehry and Gordon Kipping (Miyake Tribeca, New York); Herzog & de Meuron (Prada, Tokyo); Tadao Ando (Armani Teatro, Milan); Renzo Piano (Hermes Ginza, Tokyo); Future Systems (Selfridges, Birmingham); Masamichi Katayama ("A Bathing Ape", Tokyo, Osaka, and New York); Coop Himmelb(i)au (BMW Welt, Munich); Jun Aoki & Associates (Louis Vuitton Omotesando, Tokyo); SANAA (Christian Dior Omotesando, Tokyo); and Studio Novembre (Bisaza showrooms in Barcelona, Milan, Berlin, and New York)."--Jacket.