urban sparrows

Evolution Nature Store, Soho
TUESDAY, JUNE 16TH 2009
AREA MAP

Evolution Nature Store is one of the coolest retail establishments I have ever experienced. Granted, I've worked as a retail designer and have had more than my share of stores with flashy colors and designer names, but this store is like walking through a natural history museum where you can buy everything you see! Their stock include items like butterflies and beetles, fossils, seashells, skulls and skeletons, medical models, and tribal art.

I spent more than an hour in this store touching everything and chatting with the staff about how they acquire their product. Their specimens are obtained from paleontologists, entomologists, anthropologists and others who supply museums and private collectors from all corners of the world. A taxidermist or doctor retires and doesn't want to keep their creepy stock of dead objects, so they donate it to this store.

I think the dendrites are the loveliest things in the store.

If I had to guess a percentage, I would say that 80-90% of the specimens in the store are the real deal, with only a handful of product being replicas (such as saber tooth tiger teeth). The store is open to renting out its stock as props for photographers and events, too.

Guess where your XMAS gifts are coming from this year!