Blu Lab is a true game-changer in the ebullient city of Abidjan. The recently opened concept store in the residential Bonoumin neighbourhood offers a new experience to shoppers while highlighting the importance of streetwear in modern Côte d'Ivoire - as anywhere else in the world. The sprawling concrete space is a minimalist gem with just a smattering of clothes and accessories presented like art objects under pools of lights, alongside an incubator area and a member-only workspace. Blu Lab also functions as a hangout spot where artists from different fields flock together to create the kind of synergy that is the ultimate goal of the store.

Behind Blu Lab are five dream-filled Ivorians – Gaston Ouédraogo, Jean-Yves Kouassi (founder of Djainin), Yann Seba (founder of Bana Bana), Ange David who works on the store's social media, and Aïcha Kone, a painter who greets the clients at the store. The project found its genesis in 202, as Ouédraogo, a political science and business graduate, started mulling a store project. “There was no home for streetwear here,” he laments when I meet him and his team at Blu Lab. As a partner at Djainin, a burgeoning streetwear brand specialising in denim and bold prints, he first thought about a flagship store, but he soon realised that including other African brands would be more beneficial. His family owned the building, which was first meant to house a furniture store, but after some reflection, Blu Lab won out.

The space opened in January during the CAN (the Africa Cup of Nations), when the city was agog with excitement. Their launch party sold out. In its initial version, the store was rather fancily decorated. ''People would finally come more for the decoration than anything else so after a while, we decided to have a spare space in order to put the focus on the clothes,” observes Kone. Top sellers have included pieces by Free the Youth, Mayeti, Djainin and Bana Bana. The store is not limited to African creation however and also stocks such brands as Supreme and Nike. ''We're the first generation to be influenced both by Africa and the western world,” Seba reflects.

The Blu Lab crew has high ambitions. More than just being a happy hunting ground for sneakerheads and streetwear buffs, they want to unite like-minded people. The store therefore host workshops, talks and art exhibitions so that ''people can learn things here,'' adds Seba. Such is the aura of Blu Lab that two teenagers recently came from the other side of town with their savings, determined to get just anything from the store. ''It didn't matter what, they just wanted something,'' the team remembers. A sign indeed that it has the influence to grow a following akin to its international counterparts.

Abidjan has a long history of hot stores that have now sunk into oblivion. Asked about their plans for a successful future, Ouédraogo says: ''The thing is, many of the spots you're mentioning were hot because the owners attracted people. At Djainin, people don't just come for us. They're attracted to the streetwear. Blu Lab should be able to run for a very long time, even without the five of us involved.”