November is an especially magical time in New York. As temperature levels drop in our race toward the festive season, the pine fronds of the Rockefeller Christmas Tree become illuminated with thousands of twinkling lights and the large shop windows get dusted with trimming. Yet, for one newly unveiled boutique on the corner of East 57th Street, the presence of dominating stork and giraffe statues nestled against a backdrop of showground lights and a bed of iconic four-pointed floral motifs will capture this enchantment long after we ring in the new year.
Indeed, opened on November 15 and just in time for our holiday shopping, luxury French Maison Louis Vuitton has unveiled an expansive emporium set to be a cornerstone of retail, culture and gastronomy in Manhattan’s Midtown. In anticipation of a multi-year renovation of the Louis Vuitton 5th Avenue flagship, the Maison has revealed an ambitious and expansive temporary store catering to both wearable and edible appetites. Across five storeys—the biggest Louis Vuitton retail space in the United States—patrons can indulge in heritage art-deco architecture, monumental sculptures like the towering 16-metre high obelisks composed of iconic Courrier Lozine 90 trunks ascending toward the ceiling, and the debut of two bespoke culinary indulgences.
Across exposed concrete and wood floors—most of which are flanked by the striking visual installation of mirrored Speedy and Carryalls stacked like bricks to build an 18-metre-high vertical wall—a soft atrium invites you in to encounter the wonder of design and craftsmanship central to the brand. A travel room, another sigil of the house, is offered on the first floor along with spaces dedicated to leather goods, ranging from an expansive selection of bags and lifestyle items and a personalisation artisan on hand.
The subsequent floors are dedicated to the women’s and men’s universes, with creations from Nicolas Ghesquière and Pharrell Williams, respectively, housed between furniture pieces from the previous boutique, keeping within Louis Vuitton’s commitment to circular creativity, and a careful curation of collectible vintage and contemporary furniture from leading artisans and architects like Carlo Mollino, Charlotte Perriand, Christophe Delcourt and Pierre Augustin Rose.
A culinary odyssey awaits on the fourth floor through the introduction of two new experiential destinations. The first is Le Café Louis Vuitton, a cafe and library space featuring a principal restaurant, reading alcove and expansive 70-person bar.
French chefs Arnaud Donckele and Maxime Frédéric have created a signature menu with local talents at the helm of the restaurant, boasting exquisite items like a lobster or truffle ravioli embossed with the flower monogram and Damier tartlets filled with fresh, seasonal ingredients. Croque sandwiches, a sensation in Paris will make their transatlantic debut, while the burger, an American staple, will undergo the LV treatment, too.
Expanding upon the digestible Louis Vuitton savoir-faire is the presence of Le Chocolat Maxime Frédéric at Louis Vuitton. Presenting a range of signature bars and specialties handcrafted by the renowned chef Pâtissier and his team in their Paris kitchens, the desert zone is a permanent location following stints in Shanghai and Singapore.
Saving the best till last, the fifth and final floor is divided between private retail lounge spaces consisting of three intimate salons, along with an area for the Objets Nomades and the Art de la Table collections. A secret room in the style of a loft is a unique feature, too, with Louis Vuitton high watches and jewellery enclosed inside.
The opening is the next step in a historic relationship with NYC spanning over 100 years. From selling products in the U.S. from 1898 onwards to opening the first independent store in 1980, Louis Vuitton is unwavering in its commitment to forge a one-of-a-kind shopping destination in the city, with the pop-up servicing as a multi-faceted space for retail, hospitality and art.
Continuing the tribute to New York is an exclusive capsule collection that riffs on New York iconography like the city’s iconic licence plate downsized to a bag charm that adorns Avenue Slingbag and Keepall, or a Capucines panelled with the city’s concert skyscrapers.
As the Maison says in a press release: “ Between the store’s engaging spaces and the whimsical world within the cafe, Louis Vuitton 57th Street NYC is a temporary store that aspires to leave a lasting impression for New Yorkers and travellers alike.”
Just like the travel accessories created by Mr. Vuitton 170 years ago, this is an experience set to be packed up and whisked away. Not ever truly gone, but imprinted on our memory like the faint vignette of a passport sticker stamped onto your LV monogram trunk.
What will remain though, is the joyful energy that reverberated through the space at the star-studded opening celebration overnight in the store. Fêted by friends of the house like Ana De Armas, Jennifer Connelly and Cynthia Erivo and NYC socialites like Francesa Scorsese and Martha Stewarts, flick through pictures from the party, below.
This story first appeared on GRAZIA International.
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