Showfields department store

With the tagline “the most interesting store in the world,” it is no wonder that Showfields is becoming popular in Miami

BY GRACE RODRIGUEZ, SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER

A staircase full of blue Takashi Murakami flower art welcomes visitors to Showfields, a one-of-a-kind department store that combines online small businesses with local artists.

Established in 2017 by Israeli entrepreneur Tal Zvi Nathanel, Showfields started out as a small store in New York City. In May 2020, Showfields expanded their market by adding a location in Miami Beach. Located on 530 Lincoln Road, Showfields is open from 12 p.m. to 7 p.m. daily. Visitors of Lincoln Road stroll in and out of the store, attracted to its vibrant colors and museum-like atmosphere.

Showfields was established by Nathanel in partnership with Amir Zwickel and Katie Hunt to give online businesses an opportunity to open a physical store that people can visit. This allows these online stores to branch out from the digital to the real world, which in turn brings in prospective customers who may have never heard of such a brand if they were only sold online.

“About 95 percent of the brands in Showfield’s never had a physical presence before,” Nathanel said.

The establishments partnered with Showfields offer diverse merchandise, including gym wear, skin care and purses. Brands such as Maison de Sabre, Inkbox and Akalo are featured at the Miami location. Maison de Sabre sells handcrafted phone cases, wallets and mini tote bags made of leather. Inkbox offers do-it-yourself temporary tattoos that last long, which appeal to people interested in tattoos but who do not want the commitment to a real tattoo. Akalo wearable vitamins are topical vitamin patches that deliver the benefits of vitamins through the user’s body within a 24-hour period.

“We are living in a time where there are more brands, more art, more innovation. The last decade was like heaven for creators,” Nathanel said.

In addition to being an artistic marketplace, rooms are available towards the back of the department store for private events. One room features a seating area with a podium, usually for a speaker or a singer and another larger, wider room features a reception-type area with a full kitchen and bar.

A lot of the art used in the center is brought in locally and also nationally. Design and Architecture Senior High School has partnered with Kartell and Showfields to display chair art created by ten select students. This art was created in 2020 and the chairs are made of sustainable materials, each with its own style.

Additionally, the majority of the art featured at the store is brought in by local artists. Recycled cardboard sculptures of words, geometric shapes and body limbs by artist Philip Lique line the walls of the second floor of the store. Wall sculptures by Miamibased artist Alissa Alfonso are showcased on the first floor. Alfonso’s art is made up of found repurposed materials, such as cloths and fabrics to reflect on the waste made by humans on a daily basis.

On another end of the store, yoga balls made by textile artist Laura Marsh are located in their own exhibit created with the fitness enthusiast in mind. These yoga balls are made up of different cloths and textures ranging from a variety of colors to create a patchwork-like design, distinctive to each yoga ball. Marsh’s art is made with the mindset that an immersive environment in order to seperate the viewers from a world that is becoming more and more consumed by technology and social media.

In addition, Perrier has also partnered with Showfields to showcase their own art, a fusion between the brand and an art piece. The Takashi Murakami flower art on the staircase is part of a partnership with Perrier, where the flowers are lime, lemon and bright pink colored: the colors shown on the typical Perrier bottle, with a splash of pink to add dimension.

Showfields also partnered with many fashion brands, such as Club Casual, Nessy Khem and Gaala.With trench coats, dresses and jumpsuits, Gaala is particularly focused on reducing their environmental footprint and they make their clothing out of fabric remnants that would otherwise be sitting in landfills.

Showfields is a unique place that brings together an array of many kinds of local art along with online stores of all different types to create a home for these products to be sold. Given that the only physical locations are located in New York City and Miami, Showfields lives up to the tagline “the most interesting department store in the world.”

TATTOOED STATUE: A replica of the Venus de Milo, this blue statue wears some of the many temporay tattoos avaliable at Inxbox.

Grace Rodriguez / highlights