Valentino opens giant flagship store in New York

By

Florent Gilles

Published
Aug 7, 2014

On Friday, August 1, Valentino opened its new 20,000 square foot flagship in New York. The spectacular flagship was designed by David Chipperfield, who has worked on recent concepts for the Roman fashion house. Selfridges also selected the architect's firm to design its new accessories department on Oxford Street in London.

Located at 693 Fifth Avenue in a historic building that long housed the department store Takashiyama, the new location will provide the brand with its largest ever space, as well as a record rent for the neighborhood according to the local real estate press, at somewhere between 2,600 and 3,000 dollars per square foot (between 1,900 and 2,300 euros).

Representing proof of commercial success for designers Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli, the store’s womenswear and menswear departments share similar dimensions, at about 4,500 square feet each. Meanwhile, accessories (handbags, shoes, belts, etc.) are presented in a central atrium with 27-foot high ceilings.

The store’s steel and glass facade spans three floors, and its opening marks a milestone for the Italian luxury label, which was bought in 2012 by Mayhoola, an investment company owned by the royal family of Qatar.

The year following the purchase, the group published record results, recording growth rate of over 20% for four consecutive financial periods, culminating in 2013 with a turnover of 500 million euros, up 25% compared to 2012.

Valentino currently has 116 monobrand stores worldwide, including 12 in the US, a market that accounts for about 25% of the company’s sales, CEO Stefano Sassi said in an interview with Women's Wear Daily, insisting that the United States is “Valentino’s most important market." Two other US locations are planned for this year - one in Aspen (Colorado) and the other in Miami’s Design District.