Timbuk2 Designs, Inc. launched its very first retail store located in the San Francisco neighborhood of Hayes Valley. The store will officially be open for business starting on April 1st.

The new Timbuk2 store will feature one-of-kind and limited edition extra-small, small and medium classic messenger-style bags made of specialty fabrics and unique color combinations that are not part of the company’s current wholesale offerings. Fabrics include Maharam wools and textured three-panel combinations. The store will also feature an ongoing display of artist original canvas bags that currently features six local San Francisco-based artists.

“The store is a brand showcase and a celebration of our 17-year San Francisco heritage. The bags in the store are made in our San Francisco factory, using specialty fabrics and original artwork, and are not available anywhere else, said Mark Dwight, CEO of Timbuk2. “We are excited to join the growing collection of specialty boutiques and restaurants in the revitalized Hayes Valley shopping district. This is a dream-come-true for all of is at Timbuk2.”

The Timbuk2 store concept was driven by Avantgarde, a San Francisco marketing agency specializing in influencer marketing and special branding projects, and designed by William Duff, Architects, a San Francisco architecture firm specializing in retail, residential and commercial projects. According to Duff, the 800-square foot space was inspired by Dwight’s idea to complement the urban aesthetic of San Francisco featuring refined elements against the rough, weathered concrete and steel that form the backbone of the city. Other elements include finely crafted wall fixtures, concrete floors to reference city sidewalks and graffiti murals inspire the full-bleed graphic on the back wall. A Corten steel sign and low voltage track lights paired with high-bay warehouse lights and flat screen computers mounted on raw metal workbenches complete the design.

“My approach was to keep the design simple and let the materials and their application tell the story,” says Duff. “It was challenging to achieve all of this on a very tight construction budget, but an excellent project team, including the guiding vision of Avantgarde and the capable implementation of NorCal Construction, enabled us to pull it off.”

“This San Francisco store will allow Timbuk2 to fully express their brand promise by showing the customer the full potential and creativity of the messenger bag through novel construction and use materials all with in a Timbuk2 environment,” said Marcus V Colombano, Partner at Avantgarde. “This retail forum will be great opportunity for Timbuk2 to not only show the customer what they can do but demonstrate to the press and influencer community what Timbuk2 is all about.”