Ever been to London? There are stores covered from head-to-toe in Beatles memorabilia. You can’t escape the sight of John, Paul, George, and Ringo. They’re everywhere. Less prevalent are The Rolling Stones, whose logo and memorabilia isn’t as readily available to the eyes at The Beatles. It’s no competition, but why isn’t Rolling Stones memorabilia plastered all over the city? Well, the band is now working on fixing that with their very own Rolling Stones show.
The Store
The Stones’ new flagship shop is called RS No. 9, located in Carnaby Street in the posh Soho neighborhood. Once again, the classic rock band is breaking new ground by creating their own retail space. The band and, more accurately, their team managed to open it during a pandemic. The store is rather pretty to the eyes with the Stones’ signature colors: red, black, and white. The shade of the store is referred to as “Stones Red.” Massive red tongues are everywhere, and there’s a 30-minute film about the band on loop. Imagine and empathize with the employees who’ll have to watch that all day, almost everyday.
What Does The Store Sell?
Overpriced merchandise, of course. There are T-shirts, water bottles, and all the Stones-related fashion a fan would want. The store is selling 80 pieces of clothes and accessories. Expect more items to come with the inevitable release of new material from the Stones, which they teased with a rather promising single. The store was originally scheduled to open over the summer, but plans changed due to COVID-19.
The Store is Here to Stay
The Rolling Stones shop isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. It’s not a “pop up shop.” The location has been leased for years to come. According to the Stones’ frontman and brilliant songwriter Mick Jagger, he believes business will slowly continue to pick up over the next year (via Rolling Stone)
“It’s eternal optimism. You could have put it off, I guess, until next year, but there will be a little bit of pick up, I think, and people will be curious. People are out and about a bit more than they were… Into next year we hope that things will change and things will improve.”
The Future of the Store
In the future, the band will most likely make appearances or unveil surprises at the shop. No time soon, though, given the pandemic. According to Mat Vlasic, one of Universal Music Group’s merchandise and brand management bigwigs, the store will always evolve:
“It will be ever-changing. In a traditional retail store you’re planning these things on a very long lead timeline, so we’re doing the same thing here. And really operating this as retail store. Not necessarily a band merch retail store. This is a retail store that sits among other retail stores. It just happens to be the first of its kind focused on an artist…. A lot of our planning time has been shortened so oftentimes we don’t get to plan products 12 or 18 months out, and really be able to create unbelievable, exciting pieces,” he adds. “So this was a really nice to experience to have more of a fashion lead time. That timeframe has allowed our team to be much more creative and open-end and not be confined by, ‘Oh you can’t do this because you don’t have the time.”
There’s more good news and goodies in store for Rolling Stones fans. Universal Music is releasing new remasterings of the band’s classic albums, including unheard material. The underrated Stones’ album Goats Head Soup, for example, is now available with a new mix, new songs, and live recordings. Hopefully, these remastered albums will be available to purchase in the Stones’ store. Once the world becomes a better place, too, we’ll hear new tour dates for the band’s additional North American dates for the No Filter Tour.
