opened stores in Italy, Germany, China, Japan, and more recently in Spain. In 2011, Hollister opened its first store in Dublin, Ireland in the Dundrum Town Centre. Marketing for the HCo. flagship launched in May 2009. The marketing campaign advertised the store as "The Epic Hollister Store." A&F launched a website that offered electronic postcards, downloadable wallpaper and screensaver as well as directions to the flagship and a promotional film with computer-generated graphics of the multi-level floor layout and design. A countdown timer called the "Epic Countdown" told the remaining time down to seconds until opening. The first flagship for the HCo. brand opened July 16, 2009. Stores Abercrombie & Fitch originally designed Hollister Co. stores to simulate the appearance of vintage beach shacks in an indoor shopping mall. Exterior décor included shuttered windows and light and dark brown pattern walls. A teal boardwalk with three steps leads to the entrance. The interior of the store is mostly concealed from outside view by a wall. Abercrombie & Fitch experimented with shuttered windows when they created Hollister Co. and the concept was eventually expanded to the Abercrombie & Fitch brand. In November 2013, Abercrombie & Fitch announced plans to redesign Hollister stores. The new design includes front windows and eliminates the California beach shack front porch entrance. The stores are smaller in square footage, but feature a larger merchandise area. , some of the beach shack stores with stairs had been renovated and brand new constructed stores feature the redesign. Flagship store The company opened the first flagship store for the Hollister concept 16 July 2009. The flagship was located in SoHo, New York, on Broadway. Four floors of the occupied building provide a retail space of . A company flagship representative commented, "The EPIC store is what Hollister is all about—big waves, surf, sun, and hanging out on the pier. The laidback HCo. vibe is effortlessly cool, and we're bringing the SoCal lifestyle to SoHo." Out of the total capital expenditures for fiscal 2008 of A&F Co. (up to 445 million USD), approximately US$300 million was spent on new store construction and remodeling, including the HCO flagship. The Hollister flagship store in SoHo closed in 2019. Legal issues Trademark conflict with Hollister, California According to an article in the Los Angeles Times in April 2009, Abercrombie & Fitch has threatened merchants and residents of Hollister, California who want to use