Retail Spotlight: Achilles Project

All photos courtesy of John Horner Photography.

Out-of-towners come to Boston and go straight to Newbury Street, home to Karmaloop and the usual retail suspects. Mighty generic. For a look into the future of retail spaces, head toward the waterfront to the still-developing Fort Point Channel neighborhood'think DUMBO 10 years ago'and check out Achilles Project. It’s much more than your typical clothing store.

Housed in a former warehouse with high ceilings and gleaming wooden floors, Achilles Project includes a boutique, bar/restaurant, art gallery, and hangout space. Diversifying a retail space isn’t new'e.g., Fred Segal’s in Santa Monica and the original Prohibit in NYC'but Achilles Project may be the best one yet. Check out our photo breakdown of the spot below…

THE FLOOR

The front of the space has rows of mobile racks with apparel from Complex-approved brands like Public School, Rag & Bone, McQ Alexander McQueen, Surface to Air and J. Lindeberg'a lot of stuff you won’t find anywhere else in the Bean.

THE RACKS

Racks hold one garment per size for each piece. This makes everything on the store floor feel pleasantly uncluttered and clean. Check for Achilles’ new eco-friendly in-house line, in collaboration with Citizens of Humanity.

THE KICKS

The middle section features a a shoe bar that targets the advanced sneaker consumer (a.k.a. regular readers of LACED)'check for the latest from Spring Court, Gourmet and Common Projects.

THE BAR

Further back is the bar area, complete with HDTVs, WiFi, a bunch of Xbox 360s and Wiis (and Guitar Hero!) and a full DJ setup for after hours fun.

THE RESTAURANT

Called Persephone, the restaurant specializes in American-inspired dishes made with local ingredients. It’s also reasonably priced, which is good, since you just blew all your dough on gear.

ACHILLES PROJECT
283 Summer Street
Boston, MA
617-423-ACLS