Junk Food Flagship Opens on Abbot Kinney

A space that fuses together past, present and future, Junk Food worked hand-in-hand with designers and architects to bring their mid-century design ideas to life, putting a modern twist on the early 1900’s-built space.  The approach to the design and architecture of the Junk Food flagship is similar to their approach to the clothing they design – respectful of the  past with a modern interpretation that  infuses today’s aesthetics and amenities.

Exposed brick walls, concrete floors and wood beams provide a glimpse to the building’s past along with evidence of earthquake retrofitting, which brings the structure up to today’s building code.  In its past life, the Junk Food flagship was a 1920’s Hudson Car dealership. In the early 80’s it was a secret test garage to build one of the world’s first super cars: The Vector. By the mid-late 80’s, it became Perry Farrell’s from Jane’s Addiction recording studio. More recently it was a book store and then a gallery, before being reincarnated into the Junk Food flagship retail store.

“We have always looked for unique ways to design around iconic emotional properties and imagery.  It is in our DNA to deconstruct iconic elements, and inject a modern unique storyline or layout to create a fresh point of view. We approached the store in the same way.” says Mike Palermo, Creative Director of Junk Food.

“There are very clear heritage design elements that anchor the space.  We then muted back the overall palette, and really focused on interesting lines and textures.  We chose some bright pop colors to layer in and book ended the look with some original mid-century modern fixtures and pieces. It has a bit of, reinterpreted Scandinavian beach house feel.”

The space also features an eclectic mix of design details that represent significant periods in design that have occurred since the building was built.  Authentic colorful globe lights from the 1904 World’s Fair, held in St. Louis, MO illuminate the store, while handpicked, mid-century furniture is situated throughout and provides warmth to the space.  The hand constructed cash wrap is made with wide grain mahogany paired with a white marbled counter top, and is a look I have been seeing a lot of lately in newly renovated spaces.  The warmth of the wood offsets the cool qualities of the white marble resulting in a well balanced and zen-like space.

A fun fact:  The braided rug seen above was fashioned out of 400 Junk Food tees.  How’s that for reuse/recycle?!?

Should you find yourself in the vicinity of Abbot Kinney in Venice, be sure to stop by the Junk Food flagship store located at 1103 Abbot Kinney Boulevard in Venice CA.