April 9, 2021 |
Horah! We’ve finally made it to stage two of Bo-Jo’s map out of lockdown. What does the holy April 12 mean, you ask? Well, we can go get our hair done (and nails too!), get back in the gym and more importantly, go boozing in outdoor restaurants and beer gardens. But this not-so-blue Monday also means all non-essential retail is back open for business: meaning you can shop to all your heart’s content (rejoice!). But what exactly do we have to look forward to in approximately 72 hours? We’ve put together a must-know guide of all the stores, pop-ups and desirable luxury goodies that’ll be up for grabs. Credit cards at the ready!
Browns Brook Street
After a year spent shopping online, what will physical retail look and what will we want from the shopping experience post-pandemic? All eyes are on Browns, for the answer to those existential questions. The storied boutique – which has been at the forefront of so many retail trends for over half a century – has once again reinvented itself, moving around the corner from its South Molton Street home, to a new historic location.
Browns Brook Street occupies a grand, Grade II listed, Georgian townhouse that once belonged to the Colefax and Fowler’s owner, the American tastemaker and heiress Nancy Lancaster. Many of the original features and historic wallpapers are intact, including her stunning yellow drawing room and the Ante Room, with its Flemish frescoes, but Milan based architects Dimorestudio have added bold industrial fixtures and fittings to the Georgian splendour. Think Bridgerton meets Donald Judd, with an invisible layer of Farfetch technology that brings the whole place into the 21st century.
Holli Rogers, chair of Browns, says the intention was to create, “a place that you would want to visit again and again. It truly is a destination and has something for everyone; those who love art, food, design, interiors, history and of course fashion.” This is a place to come, meet friends, discover new things and linger.
The courtyard restaurant, dominated by a beautiful cherry tree, run by Native, provides a relaxed new meeting spot for London’s creative community. There’s an immersive room, curated by different artists, that you enter and experience, whilst the clubhouse on the top floor takes personal shopping to a new level boudoir-like hang out rooms and smart mirrors, that act like giant iPads and are connected to your personalised wish lists and the whole Browns inventory. There’s also a salon space where top hair, nail and tattoo artists will take up revolving residencies. From the Focus room on the ground floor – a malleable exhibition space currently devoted to an exclusive Marine Serre capsule – to the sneaker room, jewellery room and the fashion floors above, each of Browns Brook Street’ intimate, interconnecting salons offer a different experience.
Instead of selling each brand separately, Browns mixes everything together. “What boutiques and specifically Browns stands for, is our edit and we can really showcase that with Browns Brook Street – we’ll be merchandising by vibe, feeling and trend adding in that element of exploration. Ultimately though, it’s about offering something that goes beyond the product and giving them a reason to come back as fundamentally the store is just one part of the customer experience.” There’s a no-pressure atmosphere. This isn’t a museum, it’s a fashion playground, with customers able to create wish lists in-store, and pay for them later, at home, so as not to spoil the fun. “Whether you browse in-store and transact online at a later date, each element needs to work harmoniously,” says Rogers.
The service is next level, seamlessly integrating your online account to the physical space. The big move was planned before Covid hit, but many of Browns innovations – particularly the melding of the online and physical experience – anticipated the changes to retail that Covid has accelerated. People need a compelling reason to leave the house to shop. Physical stores need to give people something that the online experience does not. “The store is all about personal connection and personalised experience – which I think we are all craving now. it really is a space to linger and hang out in.” says Rogers.
Opening week exclusives include a Polo Ralph Lauren Polo capsule collection and three new residencies in the store’s club suite, including Rihanna’s manicurist Jenny Longworth, LA tattooist Delphin Musquet as well as virtual hypnotherapy sessions with the renowned Michel Occelli. CC
Harrods
Heading down to Knightsbridge April 12? You’re in for a double-whammy. Miu Miu’s sport-tastic SS21 pop-up, originally set to open back in February, will be free to venture through for the very first time. Expect crystal-embellished minis, candy-coloured trackies and those rather fantastic footy boot-kitten heels. Who needs a PureGym membership when you can galavant around London looking like Sporty Spice?
That’s not all. You can also explore the brand new Hermès space dedicated to the ‘Women’s Universe of Hermès’. Located on the store’s first floor, immerse yourself in the depth and richness of artistic director’s Nadège Vanhée-Cybulski’s vision, where alongside a lavish seating area – ideal for giving your puppies a rest after all that shopping – you can shop the key pieces from the brand’s SS21 collection. PT
Selfridges
Anyone into their shopping here in the capital will be well aware of how brilliant Selfridges’ Corner Shop is. Across the year, the Oxford Street store invites brands and industry insiders to take over the space, in turn, creating the most dynamic pop-up in town.
This time around, it’s the turn of the sustainable juggernaut Pangaia. Labelling themselves ‘A materials science company’ over a brand, Pangaia works with the world’s leading institutions and laboratories to create high-tech, highly-sustainable, deeply desirable sweats, tees and trackies – made of everything from grape leather to seaweed. The vibrant, colourful space – enhanced by a giant prism of light – will teach customers of the science that goes into making these ace pieces. This is a must-see. PT
Dover Street Market
One of the many joys of working at Ten Towers is being a stone’s throw away from the hallowed halls of Dover Street Market (a trip to the concept store makes for quite the leisurely lunchtime stroll). And boy, don’t Rei Kawakubo and Adrian Joffe have some right good treats up their sleeves.
Alongside a brand new, untouched Givenchy installation located on the ground floor, as well as a brand new Homme Plus space across the way, expect new Craig Green exclusives, new Mikimoto Comme des Garçons pearls and plenty of other goodies from Molly Goddard, Simone Rocha and more. PT
Matches Fashion
An e-tailer near-and-dear to our hearts, Matches Fashion will be swinging open the doors to its Mayfair townhouse, 5 Carlos Place on Monday. Inside, expect an exclusive exhibition from Sabine Marcelis, as well as the store’s newly decorated private shopping suites – get booking now, appointments for the next two weeks are nearly full up!
In a month’s time, Matches will also launch its first fine art and music partnership. Dubbed Pressing Matters, the project – curated by Pavement Licker with Helium London – will feature an exhibition and a one-off auction where rare vinyls from the likes of The Rolling Stones, Kano and Arctic Monkeys will be up for grabs. All money raised will go to Music Support, a charity dedicated to supporting those in the music industry here in the UK affected by mental ill-health. PT
More goodies!
All shopped out yet? Don’t put those bags down yet! Moschino, Fendi, Valentino, Dsquared2, Burberry and more will be stocking their SS21 goodies in-store. Sportmax will be selling its Denim Culture capsule collection at Max Mara’s Bond Street store, Dior will be selling its iconic Lady Dior, Gucci will be unleashing the new Beloved bag collection and Cartier has just revealed its new 40mm Ballon Bleu watches. That’s a lot of shopping you’ve got to catch up on, happy spending! PT
Top image: Rihanna, Cara Delevingne and Joan Smalls at Chanel AW14.
