There are many words that have been used to describe the specific shade of pink on the exterior of the Paul Smith Melrose shop in LA: bubble-gum, fuchsia, and even Pepto Bismol have all been used. Whatever terminology you use, one thing is certain: you can’t miss it if you tried.
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In fact, if you’ve ever come across the #pinkwall hashtag on Instagram, it’s a near certainty the snap it was tagged with was taken in front of the shop, which has become a lodestone of sorts for visitors to the city and residents alike.
But our Melrose shop is much more than a photo op; inspired by architect Luis Barragán’s bold use of colour, it’s a concrete symbol of Paul Smith’s optimistic ethos and philosophy, which also happened to make it the perfect spot for our latest campaign.
A salute to our Signature Stripe, a new trompe l'oeil mural has been unveiled at the shop which makes it appear as if the hot pink exterior is being ripped away to reveal its inner stripe. “If we have a company logo, it’s probably our Stripe,” Paul once said and it’s an apt descriptor of our now world-famous Signature Stripe. Instantly recognisable, the motif represents the pinnacle of Paul Smith craft, heritage and innovation.
If we have a company logo, it’s probably our Stripe.
Paul Smith
And like the hot air balloon we wrapped when the Signature Stripe took to the skies last year, the Melrose, Unwrapped mural itself was intended as a tribute to the motif’s artisanal origins and timeless good looks – right down to how we went about creating it.
Conceived by the Paul Smith team, it was the result of six painstaking days of work by Overall Murals, who hand-painted the entire thing from start to finish using a whopping 15 gallons of paint, which they custom mixed by eye to match the 40 different colours that make up the Signature Stripe. What’s more, the artists are so skilled at their craft that they didn’t even use guides to ensure each line was straight, relying only on their steady hands.
It’s a concrete symbol of Paul Smith’s optimistic ethos and philosophy.
Aside from being easy on the eyes (if we do say so ourselves), ultimately, the new mural stands for the boldness and inventiveness of Paul Smith as well as the respect the brand still places on heritage and artisanship. Which, funnily enough, also happen to be words you could use to describe the Signature Stripe.
The new mural stands for the boldness and inventiveness of Paul Smith.