Icebreaker is an outdoor apparel company that makes outdoor and performance apparel from ethically sourced New Zealand merino wool. Its retail locations—including the flagship in Chicago, as well as New York, Bethesda, MD, and San Francisco–put the brand story and its heritage front and center.

Called “TouchLab” to highlight the soft and comfortable feel of merino wool, the new flagship store design gives customers a sense of context–specifically the people and places where the wool is sourced—and emphasizes the performance aspects of Icebreaker products.

Storytelling is an important aspect of the design. Walls are lined with oversized images of sheep stations in the Southern Alps of New Zealand and graphics sharing the history of the people who care for the sheep and the wool supply chain.

Natural materials—most notably poplar wood and natural finished steel—are used throughout the store as a reference to this wild and pure geography. The fitting room doors and enclosures echo the materials and construction of the sheep sheds.

Icebreaker’s collection of base layer apparel is the company’s top seller. The wide variety of sizes and styles are organized into a floor-to-ceiling cubby display on the back wall, topped by mannequins displaying products. The display lies underneath the dynamic wooden canopy, bringing the beauty of the New Zealand sheep stations and the story of product performance together.