In September 2024, I led the development of a high-profile exhibition and pop-up store for Rapha’s 20th anniversary, launched during London Fashion Week. The project was a key part of the brand’s global rebranding journey and marked the beginning of a significant five-year brand strategy.
The ambition was to create something that felt much bigger than a traditional retail activation bringing together Rapha’s heritage, its future direction and its creative identity, while creating a strong platform for the new brand story.
I brought together expertise across multiple specialist areas, including Visual Merchandising, brand heritage, photography and videography, alongside the development of a standout art installation. The result was a cohesive experience that connected Rapha’s past, present and future in one space.
The art installation was designed with a bigger ambition in mind too. Following its London launch, the concept was developed to travel globally as a Rapha cycling art exhibition, giving the project a life beyond its original activation and creating a strong platform for the brand to continue telling its story internationally.
RAPHA 20TH ANNIVERSARY STORY LINK
https://content.rapha.cc/gb/en/story/rapha-20-past-forward
Exhibition Curation
The exhibition was designed to celebrate Rapha’s 20-year heritage while also looking forward to where the brand was heading next.
I worked across the curation and Visual Merchandising of the space, using archival photography and videography to frame the customer journey and bring Rapha’s story to life. This was supported by key apparel pieces and historic riding memorabilia, creating a journey through the brand’s history, products and culture.
The final crescendo was the entrance into a hidden central space, where a kinetic sculpture could be heard throughout the exhibition before it was revealed to the customer. Created in collaboration with an external artist duo and inspired by the launch of the Seamless Jersey, the sculpture became a visual and sensory representation of Rapha’s focus on innovation and its willingness to push the boundaries of cycling apparel.
Pop-Up Store Activation
Located within the iconic Truman Brewery retail quarter, the pop-up was designed to feel unmistakably Rapha from the moment customers arrived, with a bold Rapha Pink façade leading into a fully immersive retail environment.
The space brought together product, storytelling and experience, including a customisable workstation where customers could personalise their purchases. Workshops and repair services were also delivered by specialist tailors, bringing Rapha’s focus on craftsmanship directly into the customer experience.
The aim was to make the store feel less like a traditional pop-up and more like an extension of the brand somewhere customers could explore, interact, learn and connect with the Rapha community.
Event Programming
The activation was supported by a programme of events throughout London Fashion Week, bringing together the cycling, fashion and wider Rapha community.
- Workshops & Industry Talks bringing together influential voices from cycling and sport.
- London Fashion Week Design Seminars exploring Rapha’s approach to performance, apparel and lifestyle design.
- Book Launch & Reading celebrating the launch of Simon Mottram’s memoir, The Extra Mile.
- Exclusive Events & Parties bringing together key stakeholders, partners, customers and the wider Rapha community.
Together, the exhibition, pop-up and event programme created a much broader brand experience than a traditional retail activation.
For me, the success of the project was in finding the balance between heritage and innovation giving Rapha’s existing community a chance to reconnect with its history, while introducing the brand and its new direction to new audiences during one of the world’s biggest fashion moments.
The London activation also created a strong foundation for the exhibition concept to travel globally, allowing the story and creative expression of Rapha’s 20-year journey to continue beyond the original launch.
RAPHA LIFESTYLE LAUNCH
Lifestyle Campaign & Global Launch
As part of the Rapha brand relaunch for the Lifestyle collection, I worked closely with the Brand Creative Team to develop a campaign concept for the new Performance Sportswear collection.
The focus was on creating a strong and consistent story across the customer journey, making sure the campaign worked just as well in-store as it did online. This meant translating the creative into a physical retail experience that felt true to the new direction of the brand, while still delivering the premium and performance-led feel that Rapha is known for.
I really enjoyed the challenge of finding that balance between performance, lifestyle and fashion, and making sure the campaign felt relevant across different retail environments and customer touchpoints.
Global Campaign Execution
The campaign was rolled out across Rapha’s flagship stores and wholesale partner locations globally, with launch events in key fashion and cultural cities including London, New York, Tokyo and Berlin.
Working across different markets meant adapting the execution to each environment while maintaining a consistent global brand story. The launch events helped bring the collection to life beyond the store, creating opportunities for customers, partners and the wider Rapha community to experience the new direction of the brand.
For me, this project was a great example of how strong VM can connect creative campaign thinking with physical retail, creating consistency across markets without losing the personality of the individual space.
