DJ Khaled's Champs Sports

Creating the ultimate private retail store for a social media mogul — not so easy in 3 weeks!

The bar is set pretty high when designing for a celebrity. Add a lightning fast schedule and a hurricane in the middle of construction, and you have a great story!

DJ Khaled, record producer and social media mogul, got his start by dropping his mixed CD’s into shoppers’ bags as a sales person for Champs Sports. He’s now a brand ambassador for the company, and as a thank you, to him, Champs wanted to create a private branded sneaker store for Khaled. Having had a long relationship with Bergmeyer, Champs reached out to us to help make their vision a reality.

Develop the concept, design the space with all of its custom branded details and execute it a three-hour plane ride away in Miami (I think “another state” doesn’t clearly mean “out of town” in under 3 weeks — with Hurricane Matthew (confirm that’s the one) making an appearance in the middle of construction? The team was up for the challenge! The result is a branded space ensconced in Khaled’s “We The Best” recording studio that was kept a surprise and unveiled in a star-studded party. The invitation-only retail location serves as a studio for the artist to host inspirational and fashion-focused discussions with athletes, musicians and other celebrities or special friends.

Although the 500 sf store embodies the Champs DNA, layers of DJ Khaled’s brand are laced into the design and omnipresent throughout the space. The atmosphere reflects the energy found in a nightclub and creates an elevated experience for all visitors. The design references many of the inspirational messaging Khaled touts on social media, and his catchphrases are captured in the store’s graphics and fixtures [ not sure on fact of last piece]. Most notably is Khaled’s famous usage of the key emoji which is captured by 1721 brass keys hanging from the ceiling of the store.

I feel like it’s lacking an ending and that there should be more to the story — especially as it’s a profile piece