Concrete Amsterdam’s Steve Madden Store at Westfield Mall

Concrete Amsterdam has brought a slice of New York’s skyline to the Westfield Mall of the Netherlands with its first European Steve Madden flagship store. Unveiled in March 2025, this 150 m² retail environment reinterprets the urban rooftop as a modular, immersive playground—where architecture, branding, and customer experience converge in an inventive new format.

The Minds Behind the Design

Founded in 1997 and nestled in a historic canal house, Concrete Amsterdam is known for its people?centric approach to architecture and interiors. For this project, a dedicated team—including Rob Wagemans, Lisa Hassanzadeh, Melanie Knüwer and others—collaborated to craft a space that balances industrial rawness with refined functionality. Their goal was to honor Steve Madden’s rock?and?roll heritage while forging a new retail typology.

Rooftop Inspiration: A New York Narrative

The concept springs from New York’s rooftop culture—an elevated refuge above the bustle. Aluminum “towers” mimic abstract roof structures, inviting visitors to navigate between platforms as if exploring a city skyline. Each shoe perches on its own podium, underscoring the brand’s emphasis on individuality and storytelling. Even the cash desk is housed within a tower, its green oxidized?copper top a subtle nod to the Statue of Liberty.

Modular Retail: Display and Flow

Flexibility is at the heart of the layout. The aluminum displays are fully modular, allowing the store to adapt to seasonal drops, sales or permanent collections with ease. A central “landscraper”—a horizontal concrete display—anchors the plan, its raw finish balanced by graffiti?style tags that reference product names. Together, these elements guide shoppers through a narrative journey rather than a conventional linear path.

City Textures: Materials and Atmosphere

Concrete Amsterdam layered materials to evoke urban grit and natural respite. Tower tops alternate between leather, rubber, stone and wood, echoing the textures of Steve Madden’s footwear. Abstract street markings—zebra crossings and yellow lines—are inlaid into the floor, while seating upholstered in green fabrics suggests a bird’s?eye view of Central Park. Overhead, sculptural chandeliers and spotlights play off digital “pillar” screens, creating dynamic light and shadow that animate both product and visitor.

This flagship is more than a store—it’s an exploration of New York’s rooftops translated into a retail landscape. As part of an international roll?out, Steve Madden locations in Rotterdam and Eindhoven are slated to open in April 2025, each carrying forward this bold new typology.