Flannels

Flannels Teesside is a 17,658 sq ft multi-floor luxury retail fit-out for Frasers Group, completed November 2025, and the ninth Flannels store delivered by SmithBrewer since early 2024. The brief was to unlock cost efficiencies while retaining the core design concept, achieved through engineered fixtures and component rationalisation.

A key challenge was translating a highly bespoke luxury retail design into a repeatable system without compromising the integrity of the Flannels brand.

There was also a requirement to deliver cost efficiencies while maintaining premium materials, finishes and overall customer experience.

These challenges were addressed through close collaboration with Argent Design and the client, alongside an iterative technical development process. By embedding value engineering within design development and validating solutions through prototyping, the team ensured all efficiencies were achieved without diluting the design intent.

SmithBrewer wove value engineering into every stage of design development, turning the Flannels 2.0 vision into a repeatable retail system. Core fixture families were re-engineered to cut complexity, standardise components and improve manufacturability while keeping the premium aesthetic set by Argent Design.

Shared structural frameworks now sit behind several fixture types, reducing the number of unique parts, enabling consistent production and unlocking efficiencies at both store and programme level.

A tiered value engineering strategy lets material choices and build methods flex without diluting design intent. Mid-floor fixtures, for instance, keep their visual impact yet cost far less after thoughtful material and construction optimisation.

Taken together, the approach moves beyond traditional fit-out delivery and delivers a scalable model that balances design integrity with commercial performance, protecting brand identity as the concept rolls out.

Flannels Teesside now stands as a fully realised flagship that marries luxury atmosphere with operational efficiency, proving the Flannels 2.0 system in a live setting. Customers experience the same premium materiality, gallery like spatial flow and high end detailing envisioned by Argent Design, yet the store is built on a carefully engineered kit that can be reproduced store after store.

Through component rationalisation and shared structural systems, production lead times and manufacturing costs fell without visible compromise, giving the client a clear commercial advantage. Early prototyping and rigorous engineering meant installation proceeded smoothly, cutting risk and programme time across the large, multi floor footprint.

Most importantly, the project established a template for future outlets, offering a repeatable retail formula that safeguards brand identity while unlocking scale. SmithBrewer’s integrated approach has therefore delivered more than a single store, it has created a platform for sustained growth across the Flannels estate.