French fashion house and luxury retail company Louis Vuitton unveiled its largest single-floor retail unit in the Americas at South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa, California, recently.
This sprawling 14,000 square feet space across a single level, the store expansion has been redesigned by American architect Peter Marino. Fashioned to serve as more of a travel destination, the store has planned various attractions to appeal to its consumers, for example, the floor right above the unit was converted into the brand’s first workshop and resident artisan studio in the US, where consumers will be able to watch artisans handcraft new products and restore pieces at the atelier in real-time.
A full-time, in-store hand-painter on the main floor has been positioned to personalize hard-sided travel pieces with custom designs for consumers who crave instant gratification.
The new design draws a heavy influence by the culture of Southern California, while keeping the French heritage of the luxury brand alive. ‘Speed, movement, light,’ were the guiding principles for Marino to plan the store.
Previously, Marino has worked with the brand on its Paris Place Vendôme, Soho, N.Y., and Los Angeles stores.
The art is vibrant, with artworks of A-listers such as Damien Hirst, Farhad Moshiri, Anslem Reyle and Aaron Curry marking the store. Three new skylights flood the store with natural daylight, altered at different times of the day to invoke a travel experience. A closed-door, VIP salon is tucked into a corner.
The new façade, crafted of laminated glass and shimmering copper features ultra-modern designs such as the twisted high-tech carbon fiber shelving throughout the store, created to mimic the horizontal speed of modern day travel. The airy, modern space is suggestive of the region’s climate and sensibilities, depicted via a 27-foot custom surfboard designed by Peter Dayton hung above the “Men’s Universe” area.
What segregates the women’s and men’s sections is the ceiling design and lighting techniques used in each – “The men’s ceiling of cerused oak is linear in its design with the lighting embedded within. The shelving appears as a futuristic ribbon, made of high-tech carbon fiber. The women’s salon continues this streamlined design, but is softened. The salon uses gallery-inspired track lighting above and daylight from the ceiling that we’ve cut into.” Marino explained
Louis Vuitton’s forward-thinking ideology extends to its engagement with the art world- it thinks globally.
Richard Misrach’s “Untitled #354-03,” sits in the women’s VIP area, while Reyle’s ‘Untitled, 2004’ hangs juxtaposed to the women’s ready-to-wear and leather goods section.
For the first time ever, 25 furniture pieces from Louis Vuitton’s Objet Nomades home collection, have been accented throughout the store, including: A pair of egg-shaped Cocoon chairs by Fernando and Humberto Campana hang in the women’s leather goods area along with two orange and navy coloured leather Raw Edges Concertina chairs and a table. Paulo Giordano’s Ethno Eames bronze chair sits next to a scarf display. A Carlo Mollino Reale table and Borge Morgensen table, made in the Forties and Fifties, respectively, showcase small leather goods and notebooks and stand in front of a long display of red, black and pink handbags. The frosted Murano glass Bell Lamp by Barber & Osgerby, the designers of the 2012 Olympic torch, is solar powered (with an option for USB charging) and also has a leather handle, while the origami-inspired leather Tabouret camp stool by Atelier Oï, folds flat.
The extensively laid-out store will house the brand’s women’s and men’s ready-to-wear, leather goods, shoes, accessories, textiles, watches and fine jewelry and fragrance collections, along with its publishing and home assortment.
An exclusive collection to the South Coast Plaza launch was created, which includes a metallic leopard print Capucines mini; gold-sequined Petite Malle; a crocodile version of the Christopher backpack; women’s star trail monogram ankle boot with patches; men’s Trocadero Richelieu sneaker in a variety of Epi leathers; a skater dress for women, and a diamond blossom XL fine jewelry medallion, which is scheduled to pre-launch at the store in advance of its worldwide introduction in October.
“If there’s a glimpse of what the future could hold for luxury boutiques, the newly redesigned Louis Vuitton is it,” Debra Gunn Downing, spokeswoman for South Coast Plaza, said. “From the site-specific art to exclusive merchandise, the company has created an immersive shopping and cultural experience that cannot be found online — a brilliant move.”
