MOD REF NEW YORK CITY | SOHO
A multi-phase creative and marketing activation anchoring Mod Ref’s first permanent New York City presence — from pre-opening visual strategy through launch campaign and store opening.
OVERVIEW
MULTI-PHASE ACTIVATION (OCT 2024 – JUN 2025) INTRODUCING MOD REF’S MINIMALIST ETHOS TO NEW YORK ACROSS RETAIL AND DIGITAL.
FOLLOWING A SUCCESSFUL 3-MONTH POP-UP, OPENING A PERMANENT NYC STORE BECAME A KEY 2025 MILESTONE—ANCHORING MOD REF IN A MARKET THAT HAD ALREADY SHOWN STRONG TRACTION.
ROLE
Led creative direction and marketing strategy for the full NYC expansion. Developed the visual language, shoot concepts, location scouting brief, and channel storytelling. Oversaw campaign rollout across email, social, paid, and lookbook. Coordinated interior design direction and brand philosophy documentation before the space was built.
The entire creative direction was locked before construction started. I built the campaign timeline, defined the visual language, wrote the interior design philosophy, scouted shoot locations, and mapped the channel rollout across email, social, paid, and lookbook. The goal was zero reactive decisions once the project went live.
Step Two
Develop the interior ethos—an extension of Mod Ref’s brand philosophy.
Brand Philosophy
The space reflects a timeless design approach
Interior choices mirror the quality and simplicity of the garments
Materials express restraint, longevity, and value
Minimalism is used to spotlight the product—not compete with it
Design Language
Clean architectural lines
Natural material palette
Purposeful, functional fixtures
Seamless integration between form and use
Customer Experience
A calm, intentional environment
Clothing is the focus, not the space
Easy to navigate and visually quiet
Subtle, elevated touchpoints throughout
The goal was to create New York–style content that actually felt part of the city - not just dropped in. I didn’t want to mimic what already exists, but instead translate Mod Ref’s calm, neutral lens into something that felt grounded in the pace, texture, and rhythm of NYC. We pulled in everyday references—subways, street corners, Chinatown markets, wheat-paste posters—and filtered them through our world. Everything from styling to layout was about making this feel like a natural extension of Mod Ref, not a campaign trying too hard. It had to look like we belonged.
The entire campaign was produced in Los Angeles. We built New York on our terms: scouting LA locations that mirrored the texture of the city, matching light conditions, sourcing backdrops that carried the same grit and rhythm without faking it. The palette stayed neutral. Soft, structured pieces in motion against concrete, tile, and worn surfaces.
The goal was never to do a fashion shoot. It was to document a feeling: what Mod Ref looks like when it belongs in New York. Every frame was designed so you could step out of the image and into the store. That the whole thing was executed 2,500 miles from Soho, on a lean crew and compressed timeline, is the part that doesn't show. Which was the point.
I designed the interior. Warm wood, soft curves, clean lines. Every material, fixture, and spatial decision ran through one filter: does this serve the clothing or distract from it. Curved shelving, fitting room sconces, a natural material palette. Minimalist without being cold. Edited without feeling empty.
The space was designed to feel quiet the moment you walk in. No competing visual noise, no decorative excess. Just product, presented clearly, in a room that reflects the same restraint as the garments on the rack.
The store opened in May 2025 in Soho, anchoring Mod Ref in the market the pop-up had already validated.
