A Museum of Modern Skateboarding: AVENUE & SON’s Shanghai Flagship Merges Urban Culture with Architectural Luxury

In the heart of Shanghai’s vibrant Taikoo Li Qiantan—a model urban district developed by Lujiazui Group to integrate fashion, lifestyle, art, and sports—the AVENUE & SON flagship store emerges not merely as a retail space but as a bold cultural and architectural statement. Designed by Various Associates, this project challenges traditional perceptions of urban culture, seamlessly weaving its raw energy into the fabric of a luxury commercial setting, embodying the brand’s journey from street roots to global recognition.

The Brand’s Roots: A Vision by Four Pro Skaters Realized in Architecture

The project is built upon the vision of AVENUE & SON, founded in Shanghai in 2014 by four professional skaters under the guiding principle, “from street to avenue.” Lead designers Dongzi Yang and Qianyi Lin and their team successfully translated the spirit of freedom, individuality, and authenticity inherent in skate culture into a tangible architectural language. Over the years, the brand has evolved from a crew into an international name with millions of followers, sponsoring over 20 pro skaters and promoting values of perseverance, fearlessness, and independence.

A Unique Architectural Feat: The World’s First Marble Skatepark

The project’s centerpiece is the world’s first marble skatepark. The choice of luxurious marble was not merely an aesthetic or innovative decision; it was a powerful statement. This material aims to elevate skateboarding from the peripheries of street culture to the forefront of architectural and cultural discourse, especially following its recognition as an Olympic sport in 2020. The designers transformed the sport into a refined cultural and architectural宣言 (declaration), merging the grassroots energy of skateboarding with a mainstream, high-end presence.

This park, directly connected to the store via the WOODHOUSE building, is not just for pro skaters. It has become a flexible, multi-functional platform for gatherings, cultural events, and leisure, creating a continuous dialogue between interior and exterior spaces. Equipped with street lamps that recall its urban origins, the park reinforces the brand’s DNA and connects it to its roots after dark.

Design Language: Reinterpreting the Everyday Urban Landscape

The design team drew its visual and architectural language directly from the street itself, which the founders described as the “best skatepark.” The architects observed that the structures most frequently used by skaters are stairs, fences, and small ramps. This led them to avoid the traditional curved slopes of typical skateparks, instead adopting straight and oblique lines that reinterpret familiar urban terrain while significantly enhancing safety.

At the entrance, a folding metal door imprinted with the brand’s logo evokes the memory of old Shanghai street doors. Its delicate construction creates an intentional and striking contrast with the surrounding modern commercial buildings. Two staircases and a central ramp recreate familiar street conditions while providing customers with varied viewpoints of the interior displays, masterfully balancing architectural nostalgia with practical utility.

The Interior Experience: A Continuum of Visual Narrative Between Identity and Function

Inside, the rich dialogue between architectural and brand identity continues. Ramps and stairs facilitate seamless movement between inside and out. Curved handrails, symmetrical slopes, and ceiling tracks resembling road markings comprehensively reinforce the street concept. The stairs are engraved with the brand name, its birthplace (Shanghai), and founding year (2014), directly referencing how names are inscribed on actual city streets.

The interior layout revolves around a large video screen that displays skate content while concealing storerooms, fitting rooms, and waiting areas. Behind it, display zones follow a circular route to maximize visibility for shoes, hats, clothing, and skateboards. The screen’s steel framework references the letter “A” in the brand’s name, functioning as seating and a temporary display platform, innovatively merging symbolism with practical function.

Flexibility and Symbolism: The Central Ramp as a Platform for Cultural Expression

The central ramp inside the store operates on multiple levels; it is not just a design element but a flexible platform for product displays, collaborative pop-ups with other brands, and graphic interventions. Its angular surfaces and mirrored panels create dynamic, shifting visual effects, multiplying perspectives throughout the space. Opening hidden doors reveals mirrored interiors, illusorily expanding the sense of depth and adaptability. This flexibility allows the flagship to host both commercial activity and cultural exchange, reinforcing AVENUE & SON’s presence in Shanghai not just as a brand, but as a cultural representative.

Conclusion: An Architectural Legacy Immortalizing Urban Cultural Values

In short, the AVENUE & SON flagship in Taikoo Li Qiantan is no longer just a place to sell clothes and skate gear; it has become a living monument and a new landmark in the area, facing the nearby Oriental Sports Center. It immortalizes the values of perseverance, fearlessness, and community spirit on which the brand was founded. This project represents a pivotal moment where subculture meets the mainstream not by marginalizing or excessivly sanitizing it, but by celebrating its authenticity and raw energy. It sets a new standard for integrating cultural identity into contemporary urban architectural fabric and confirms the role of design in legitimizing and honoring diverse cultural expressions.

✦ Editorial Insight from ArchUp

The AVENUE & SON flagship in Shanghai, designed by Various Associates, presents an model for integrating a subculture (skateboarding) into a luxury commercial context without compromising its authenticity, achieved through the world’s first marble skatepark.However, questions remain regarding how local communities unfamiliar with skate culture receive such a project and the feasibility of applying this model in other cultural contexts. Despite this, the architectural achievement remains a milestone. It not only places the brand on the global map but also opens new horizons for architects to design commercial spaces that act as vibrant, inclusive cultural platforms, enriching urban life and celebrating its diversity.

Brought to you by the ArchUp Editorial Team

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