DRIFT

The heart of Madrid beats differently now. There’s a new pulse at 18 Fuencarral Street—an address that now holds not just a store, but a cultural beacon for a generation. On April 4, 2025, Nude Project, the Spanish streetwear phenomenon known for its fusion of fashion, art, and raw authenticity, unveiled its first-ever flagship store. They call it The Nude House. And if the name feels intimate, it’s because that’s precisely the point.

What began as a grassroots passion project between two university students just six years ago has evolved into one of the most talked-about youth culture brands in Europe. With a revenue of €26 million in 2023, a loyal fan base spanning continents, and an aesthetic that defies convention, Nude Project is no longer a startup—it’s a movement. The Madrid flagship doesn’t just mark a commercial milestone. It’s a manifesto in brick, fabric, wood, and soul.

A Brand Born from the Bedroom, Now in the Streets

Founded by Álex Benlloch and Bruno Casanovas in 2019, Nude Project emerged from humble beginnings. The two were university students with no background in fashion or business—just a shared instinct for culture and a €600 investment. They launched a few tees online and leaned into their generation’s sensibilities: anti-elitism, creative freedom, and the aesthetics of vulnerability. That authenticity—unfiltered, imperfect, real—struck a chord.

Rather than chase trends, Nude Project tapped into the emotional texture of Gen Z. Their campaigns weren’t glossy; they were raw. Their voice wasn’t aspirational; it was conversational. Their clothes didn’t just clothe; they communicated.

Fast forward to 2025, and that ethos is perfectly crystallized in The Nude House. It’s not just a storefront—it’s a physical translation of the brand’s digital soul.

Inside The Nude House: Home as Retail Strategy

From the outside, The Nude House doesn’t scream fashion destination. There are no velvet ropes, no towering logos, no cold minimalism. Instead, there’s warm light leaking through textured glass, music that’s more jazz-hop than techno, and the gentle buzz of conversation. You step inside, and you’re not entering a store—you’re entering someone’s living room.

Literally.

The space—over 200 square meters—has been designed like a house, room by room. There’s a Welcome Lounge with low-slung couches and tactile sculptures. A Reading Room featuring independent zines, curated books, and unreleased campaign imagery. A Playroom, where visitors can sketch on oversized notepads or customize garments in real time. Natural wood, soft fabric upholstery, and exposed concrete beams create a dialogue between comfort and industrial cool.

And then there’s the merch. Displayed not on racks, but on modular shelves, sculptures, and vintage furniture. Clothing becomes part of the environment. You don’t shop so much as encounter the collection. Staff members, often local artists or stylists, don’t upsell—they engage. The message is clear: this is a home for the Nude community.

Madrid as a Chosen Home

“Madrid is where retail began for us,” says co-founder and creative director Bruno Casanovas. “It’s our base. Our team, our friends, our energy—it’s here. So it only made sense to build our first house in the city that built us.”

That emotional connection radiates throughout the store. It doesn’t just serve as a sales point—it’s a temple for the brand’s values: experience, authenticity, community, and self-expression.

Nude Project’s refusal to expand via sterile chain rollouts or international hype drops is part of what makes them compelling. This flagship is personal. And because of that, it’s powerful.

Launching With “Bambino”: A Collection About Inner Youth

To coincide with the store’s opening, Nude Project released its Spring/Summer 2025 collection, titled “Bambino.” But this isn’t just another seasonal drop—it’s a conceptual extension of the store’s spirit. “Bambino” is rooted in the fun, uncensored creativity of childhood. It’s about reconnecting with your inner seven-year-old, that unfiltered dreamer who draws outside the lines, wears mismatched socks with pride, and sees clothes not as trends but as extensions of personality.

The collection was inspired by Lola, the daughter of a close friend of the founders. Her unintentional doodles, color choices, and imaginary characters served as a muse. “We wanted to create a line that made people feel again—nostalgia, joy, color, rebellion,” Bruno explains.

Visually, Bambino is a departure from Nude’s often neutral palette. It embraces color: apple green, dusty peach, baby blue, and post-it yellow. It toys with pattern: oversized cherries, warped smiley faces, child-like scrawl. It’s not chaos—it’s calculated innocence.

Key Pieces from the Bambino Collection

Several standout garments define Bambino’s narrative and direction:

  • Cutie Apple Knit Vest: A unisex, cropped knit vest featuring a hand-drawn apple motif in red and lime green. It’s cozy, nostalgic, and unexpectedly versatile—worn layered over a white shirt or solo with denim shorts.
  • Silver Capicci Capri Jeans: One of the most experimental items in the drop, these metallic silver wide-leg capris blend retro futurism with Gen-Z irreverence. The word “Capicci?” is stenciled near the hem—a playful linguistic riff without a set meaning, left open to interpretation.
  • Bacuri Knit Polo: Woven from bamboo-cotton blend yarns, this soft knit polo comes in pastel blocks, evoking kindergarten uniforms—reimagined through a high-street lens.
  • The Scribble Shorts: Loose-fit jersey shorts with sketches screen-printed directly from Lola’s drawing pad. Look closely and you’ll find doodled suns, flying cats, and lollipop-headed humans.

Altogether, the collection reinforces Nude’s ethos: fashion as a playground for emotion, nostalgia, and narrative.

Community First: A Retail Space that Breathes

Perhaps the most radical aspect of The Nude House isn’t its design or even its clothing—it’s how it centers community over commerce.

From day one, Nude Project built its brand around community-generated content, crowd-influenced decisions, and real-world feedback loops. That philosophy now materializes in the flagship store. The space regularly hosts:

  • Open-mic nights
  • In-store tattoo sessions with guest artists
  • Mental health workshops in collaboration with local therapists
  • Upcycling sessions where customers bring old Nude pieces to be revamped on-site

There’s even a dedicated wall for fan-submitted artwork, constantly updated, and a record player station where guests can swap vinyl from their personal collection.

What Nude is building here isn’t just a retail store—it’s a cultural lab, where fashion isn’t sold, but shared.

A Testament to Growth Without Compromise

Nude Project’s rise has been dramatic but organic. In 2020, they operated out of a dorm room. In 2021, they began shipping globally. By 2023, they had scaled to a €26 million turnover, growing 130% from the year prior. But despite their commercial acceleration, they’ve stayed grounded.

No outside investors. No celebrity co-signs. No hypebeast gimmicks. Their formula? Radical transparency, creative risk, and an obsessive closeness with their customer base.

That proximity is evident not only in their social media voice but also in their design process. Nearly every drop includes fan-submitted ideas, meme-based colorway names, and collaborations with micro-creators—artists, writers, illustrators—who exist outside the traditional fashion pipeline.

The opening of The Nude House is proof that authenticity scales, if done right.

What It Means for Madrid

Madrid, already a hub of youth culture, has now found in Nude Project a new type of flagship store—one that reflects its diverse, expressive, and self-assured energy. The Fuencarral Street location, nestled among vintage stores, tattoo parlors, and skate shops, was chosen deliberately.

“We didn’t want to be in a luxury zone. We wanted to be where the energy is real,” says Álex Benlloch.

The location is accessible, the vibe democratic, and the staff a rotating cast of local creatives. In this way, Nude Project helps de-gatekeep fashion—bringing high-concept storytelling and thoughtful design to a demographic often excluded by price points or aesthetics.

Looking Forward: Expansion With Intention

Though the Madrid flagship is a milestone, Nude Project’s ambitions extend beyond a single store. According to Bruno and Álex, plans are underway for pop-ups in Paris, Berlin, and Buenos Aires, with each space adapting to the cultural identity of the host city.

But unlike many fast-expanding labels, Nude isn’t rushing into global domination. “We want to grow slowly, intentionally, and in dialogue with our people,” Bruno says. “Every store should feel like it belongs not just to us—but to them.”

That restraint is refreshing. In an era when many brands expand by dilution, Nude Project is expanding by amplification—deepening its identity, not distorting it.

Final Thoughts: A Store, A Statement, A Start

The Nude House is a retail revolution in miniature. It’s what happens when two creatives reject the templates handed to them, build something for their generation, and let it evolve in real-time with their audience. It’s warm. It’s weird. It’s human.

Most fashion stores ask: “How can we sell more?”

Nude Project’s flagship asks: “How can we mean more?”

In an industry saturated with transactional design, Nude Project dares to be emotional. In a city as alive as Madrid, it dares to be personal. And in a world of prefab hype, it dares to be honest.

So if you’re ever in Madrid, make your way to 18 Fuencarral Street. Walk through the doors. Sink into the couch. Try on a vest. Read a poem. Leave with a new pair of shorts—or maybe just a feeling.

Because Nude Project isn’t just about dressing the body.

It’s about undressing the ego.

And that’s a vision worth wearing.

 

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