Nude Project opens its first US pop-up shop in Miami

Spanish brand Nude Project opened its first US pop-up shop in Miami this weekend. The label was founded in 2019 by Bruno Casanovas and Alex Benlloch and is known for dressing the likes of Madonna, Rauw Alejandro, and Ronaldinho.

“It’s the first pop-up of our lives across the pond,” Casanovas told EFE in an interview.

Hundreds of people turned out at the Miami Design District on Saturday for the opening of the brand’s pop-up, which launched in addition to the label’s nine shops across Europe.

Amid the extravagant window displays of the world’s largest luxury brands, Nude Project introduced itself to US audiences with a space that pulses to the beat of high-tempo music, meticulously curated around a large central tree. The space also features a bookcase that becomes a doorway to a photo booth.

“We came here not realising how well-known the brand was,” said Casanovas, for whom it was “the most surreal thing that’s ever happened in my life” to see a queue six blocks long in the sweltering Miami heat just minutes before opening.

Facing “one of the most challenging markets”, where “very few European brands” manage to operate and connect with people, the brand’s Barcelona-based founders took a chance on this temporary project. The brick-and-mortar shop will be open for a total of 16 days, its co-founder confirmed.

Although “I don’t think we’re the coolest, the most fun, or the funniest”, the label’s creative director believes they can offer “a genuine, real and authentic product” in the US.

The label’s stay in Miami will coincide with Billboard’s Latin Music Week, from October 20 to 23, during which, Casanovas announced, they will stage performances with surprise guest musicians, keeping the brand connected to the sensibilities of those who “create more community than anyone else”.

Over the past six years, Alex, 24, and Bruno, 25, say Nude Project has generated millions of euros in annual revenue (26 million euros in 2023, according to the latest available figures). The designers have also appeared on the cover of Forbes and what motivates them to keep growing is “the simplest thing, which is to keep having the opportunity to create non-stop”.

“That adrenaline that comes from the challenge of going to the US, where hardly anyone knows us, is what keeps us young and alive,” Casanovas said.

Alex and Bruno recalled that in 2023 they walked through the Miami Design District for the first time with the hope of bringing Nude Project there. Two years later, they have returned.

“There are so many things to do, so many countries to go to, so many people to meet that I feel we’ve only just begun,” Casanovas concluded.