Gucci Opens Chicago Pop-Up Store And Celebrates New Gucci Changemakers Program

Chicago, Ill. — Luxury brand Gucci is bringing a splash of 70’s-era glam to the shuttered South Central Bank in Chicago’s West Loop neighborhood, transforming the vacant space into a disco-inspired GG Psychedelic Pin pop-up experience.

Located at 160 N. Morgan St., the Chicago pop-up is the third iteration in Gucci’s “Pin” pop-up series, which the brand first launched at Denver’s Cherry Creek Shopping Center last November. The conceptual Pin pop-ups are inspired by interactive pins found on digital maps (each Gucci Pin pop-up location includes a customized Gucci pin that appears on Google Maps).

The 2,600-square-foot luxury pop-up store will run through March 2, 2020 and includes jewelry, accessories, shoes, and ready-to-wear from the brand’s Psychedelic collection, featuring the classic GG design newly remixed by Gucci Creative Director Alessandro Michele.

However, the Chicago iteration of the Gucci pop-up series includes more than luxury goods, as the launch party also celebrated the brand’s Chicago-based community connections, recently forged through the Gucci Changemakers North America Initiative.

Under the leadership of Renée Tirado, Global Head of Diversity, Inclusion and Equality at Gucci, the Changemakers initiative was formed to increase inclusion and diversity within the fashion industry and across communities. The Gucci North America Changemakers Impact Fund recently awarded its first round of grants to 16 grantees (chosen from a pool of 145 applicants). Two Chicago-based organizations—Braven and Afterschool Matters received grants of up to $50,000 each for a one-year funding cycle. The grants will be used to help recipients create new programming or to expand existing initiatives.

We have always believed in the importance of creating a more inclusive and diverse industry, so we must invest in and empower the next generation of creatives, designers and leaders.

According to a press statement, the first round of grantees were chosen for their focus on “improving opportunity and access for diverse people across a number of social impact initiatives, including leadership development in venture capital and technology entrepreneurship, fashion programs for underserved youth, and criminal justice reform.”

In a gesture of brand community building, Gucci invited staff and youth from After School Matters and Braven to the Chicago GG Psychedelic Pin launch party to celebrate their recent award alongside a roster of notable guests. The Gucci team was enthusiastic for the event to showcase the work of grant recipients in service of Chicago-area youth.

About Changemakers

Gucci collaborated with filmmaker and DRØME Creative Director Satchel Lee on the following short film about Changemakers. The film is narrated by Changemakers Council Co-Chair, Cleo Wade.

Change does not happen in theory, it happens in community. We are bringing the Gucci Changemakers initiative to life by bringing not only funds, but also time, energy, and care to communities that have been historically and systemically under resourced and overlooked for too long.

This post first appeared on Forbes.com. To see the original, click here.