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A live-in story teller and an indoor park are just two of the ideas we’ve recently seen launched by international airports. Now Singapore’s Changi airport, in collaboration with Singapore Polytechnic, has opened a retail store called SPELL, which is run by students to serve as an “off-campus real-word learning studio”. A group of a hundred students were selected via an interview process to work in SPELL — Singapore Polytechnic Entrepreneurship Living Lab — which opened in September. The store sells clothing and accessories under the brand name “Verve Avenue”, with stock largely sourced from Asian suppliers. Students are assigned a role — for example, buying or managing operations — according to their diploma, which also dictates the number of hours they are required to work in the store. Students are assessed and graded on their performance, which counts towards their diploma, and also have the opportunity to apply what they’ve learned in textbooks to the real world. True to their “passion for innovation and creativity”, SPELL are partnering with Motorola to create a magic mirror which allows customers to see what they would look like in SPELL’s clothing, without actually having to try items on. While learning business theory from textbooks is hugely valuable, putting it into real-life practice will help to deepen knowledge through experience. Not only that, but a concept like SPELL gives students a taste of entrepreneurship. Inspiration here for centers of learning around the world! Spotted by: Katharina Kieck