Project Overview

To help launch new denim label RE: for David Jones, we took fashion underground, literally. We took over Sydney’s historic St James station to create an underground party that perfectly expressed the classic rocker style and laid back, slightly 70’s vibe, of the brand.

Sydney commuters heading home were surprised to find the station entrance guarded by doormen, but the A-listers brave enough to venture into the slightly spooky, moodily lit tunnels and follow the mysterious signs, found themselves in an epic underground party.

Project Commissioner

David Jones

Project Creator

AZBcreative

Team

Alex Zabotto-Bentley
Jenni Munster
Peter Harley
Lucy Erasmus-Green
Hayley Brown
Nathan Sullivan
Tiz Maule

Project Brief

Texan supermodel Erin Wasson was the host for the evening, and we wanted to match her naturally cool, boho vibe with the decor.

To turn St James station into a glamorous dive, we made the platform into a VIP lounge space with oversized leather Chesterfields and vintage velvet armchairs. We added overlapping Persian carpets and potted palms inspired by vintage rock album covers and back issues of Rolling Stone magazine. We used industrial chests to make coffee tables and scoured the markets for David Bowie, Rolling Stones and classic 70’s rock albums to dress the space, along with black-painted candelabras, old guitars, typewriters, retro radios and vintage US flags.

The bar area continued the rock ‘n’ roll theme in a rougher style. We constructed a recycled wooden bar, pasted up posters, and made tables from old road cases. We worked with a Sydney Brewery to create a special RE: Authentic Ale for the night, to drink with dressed urban street food like cheeseburgers, truffle fries and kingfish tortillas.

Guests rocked out to The Delta Riggs, whose bluesy, psychedelic sounds were a perfect match for the night.

Project Need

One of the key challenges was to differentiate RE: from a sea of denim brands.

As it is an environmentally sustainable brand with classic rock style, we wanted to reflect that in the choice of venue, the decor and the event experience.

The venue itself was not without challenges; the 1930’s station was closed for track maintenance, giving us access for a day and night, but we needed to return to regular use the following day. All our installations were designed for a quick build and knock-down.

The limited access and small lift size meant that the design had be to driven by the space and how any set pieces and decorative could be physically to delivered to the platform space.

User Experience

We went back to the golden age of rock, when people went out for a wild night of great music, rather than just sitting at home surfing the net.

We kept the environment deliberately old-school and tactile to heighten the experience and emphasise the brand story. The experience of wandering through the pedestrian tunnels towards the music and buzz really heightened anticipation.

We created a full set inside, which helped people forget they were in a train station. Our aim was to transport the guests, through time and space, to immerse them in the brand and create an unforgettable experience.

Sustainability

As the brand uses recycled materials and organic cotton along with sustainable practices such as reduced water usage, it was important to us to honour those values with our event.

With a retro 1970s theme, this was quite easy, as we could source most of our props and furnishings from markets and our own archives.

The bar and performance area had a rough and ready feel, enhanced by the use of recycled timbers and re-purposed crates and cases to create furnishings.

Branded banners were made from recycled denim and beer was served in recycled glass.

Everything was designed to be reused in future projects.

Marketing - Event Experience

This award celebrates creative and innovative design for a business event. Consideration given to originality, creativity; theming;  audience connection and engagement and how the event created a seamless experience for the visitor and helped to reinforce the program's core message
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