Yahoo Autos A ‘Grand’ Opening for Courrèges in the U.S.
With its seasonless signature red knits and chic vinyl jackets, Courrèges on Friday opened a 1,000-square-foot, all-white and mirrored boutique in the SoHo section of Manhattan.
For the Paris-based luxury brand, the opening at 104 Grand Street, previously occupied by a Japanese spectacle shop, marks a return to retailing in the U.S. after a 30-year absence.
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It’s also another chapter in the revival of the 61-year-old brand since 2018 when Artémis, the family holding company of French billionaire François Pinault, took full ownership of the company after initially purchasing a stake in the business in 2015.
“This shop is going to perform really well,” Adrien Da Maia, chief executive officer of Courrèges, told WWD during an interview at the site. “I think SoHo speaks to our community and the people who are looking for Courreges.”
It helps that the shop is situated on the northwest corner of Grand and Mercer Streets, getting double exposure, and has conspicuously tall 15-foot windows.
Designed by Belgian architect Bernard Dubois, the shop is punctuated by curved lacquered wood fixtures and a floor that curves up rising seamlessly into the walls. The ceiling is completely mirrored and has “club grade” track lighting, and the area by the fitting room is also mirrored, floor to ceiling, on all three sides.
“We love the idea of a mirrored box,” said Courrèges’ artistic director Nicolas Di Felice.
Inside the fitting room there are more mirrors, creating “an infinity illusion inside, like a fun house,” Di Felice observed. Or perhaps disco-inspired? “I am really obsessed with clubs from the ’60s, ’70s, the ’90s, too,” he professed.
