In early 2018, SSENSE tapped us to imagine the signature sound for its new upcoming concept store, which had been five years in the making. The brief was manifold, and the challenge exciting:
– supporting the creative concept behind this new space;
– translating SSENSE’s digital presence into a unique soundtrack;
– complementing SSENSE MONTRÉAL’s unique brutalist design;
– accompanying shoppers and guests during their visit;
– energizing the employees in their work day;

The idea of bringing the SSENSE cyber community into the physical realm had been a dream of founder and CEO Rami Atallah since day one. Just as the SSENSE website had gone from a more traditional e-commerce site to an editorial site, with the help of then editor-in-chief Joerg Koch of 032c fame, the idea with the flagship store was to create a space at the intersection of commerce, culture and community; Not only a shopping destination but also a place that celebrates creativity by featuring curatorial events and installations from forward-thinking creators in music, art and fashion.

As such, we aimed to create a sound signature that would support and enhance the creative vision behind the space and evolve with it. We defined a carefully curated music direction in collaboration with key players at SSENSE, which we then translated into several distinct music playlists. The result is a music experience that evolves with guests from one floor to the next, from weekdays into the weekend, and from month to month, while always remaining aligned with the forward-thinking ethos of the brand and the specificity of the unique space and architecture.