In order to accomplish their expansion plans across the world, high fashion giant Balmain has opened a new flagship store in Miami. This will be followed by the opening of a 1,555-square-foot boutique in Las Vegas nestled in the wing of the Wynn Plaza.
The 2,220-square-foot space was conceived by Olivier Rousteing, the famous Balmain Creative Director, in partnership with three architects from Paris-based Studio AMV — Anna Philippou, Marie-Charlotte Prosperi-Fouchard and Victoire Guerlay. The interiors of both the flagship stores are inspired by the recently opened Milan flagship of Balmain. The creative direction explores classic rules of the Parisian hôtel particulier while assimilating hi-tech features that include the My City of Lights virtual reality concept- that was first introduced in Milan.
Massimo Piombini, CEO of Balmain, shed light upon “the strong bond between Balmain creative director Olivier Rousteing and America.” He added the importance of Miami by stating, “It (Miami) is a very important destination for the Latin American consumer — and Balmain has long been popular with that shopper, as well.”
Balmain now has five Stateside stores and all the new stores are a part of a carefully planned rollout of flagships by the brand in important cities across the globe. These store openings are building up to the launch of a landmark Paris flagship on Rue Saint-Honoré, which is projected in early 2019, replacing a Zara outlet. It has plans to expand the store locations in key cities like Rome, London and even various cities in Asia, where the brand has a very small retail presence at present. Balmain launched its digital flagship with Yoox Net-a-porter Group in July which now serves consumers in more than 100 markets.
“With 30 to 40 store openings planned for the next three to four years, the aim is to cap the number of flagships at around 50. The most important question for the next years is how to engage with the new generation of customers,” Piombini explained further.
