R13 Lands on Howard Street, Epicenter of Edgy Fashion

Chris Leba has opened his first R13 store, an 1,800-square-foot unit on storied Howard Street, a four-block thoroughfare in Manhattan that counts non-conformist designer Rick Owens as a denizen, along with innovative retailer Opening Ceremony and consignment and limited-edition sneaker retailer Stadium Goods. Palace Skateboards’ Howard Street unit features a replica of Mannekin Pis, the Brussels statue of a small boy urinating into a fountain, and there’s Smile-to-go, an outpost of the popular Smile on Bond Street, and Guild by Roman and Williams, which sells home design, French food and flowers. R13 has made the most of its long, narrow space at 34 Howard Street, exposing brick walls and concrete floors. “Howard Street has its own magic. It was time to have another outlet to express the brand. If the store is successful, we’ll want to open more,” said Leba, who calls the street a “fashion piazza.” A succession of five monolithic 13.2-foot x 9-foot LED screens flash with imagery from the Eighties of London street-inhabited punks. Behind each giant screen is housed a modular rack displaying pieces from the collection, with a cross-section of merchandise chosen by Leba. “I wanted to create a shop experience that could compete with e-commerce,” Leba said. “I

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