Hunks Installed
Though the store doesn't open until Thursday, the semi-clad doormen have arrived and apparently will be serving as advance-men for the big event.
They told us it was going to be "Awesome."
Onesole Lands In SoHo &
Stuart Weitzman Expands
Up And West
There is something a little bit upside-down about this report.
First, Onesole, the novelty interchangeable shoe brand has taken over the West Broadway space that was briefly occupied by watch Boutique SubChrono. Think of a Bermuda Bag (if you are preppy enough) for your feet where a cloglike sole can be fitted with an endless variety of sandal tops creating mules or ankle straps or what have you. You can wear them with your Topsy-Tail unless your hairdo is already fitted with a Bumpits!. Yes, they sound a little infomercially to us too, but they appear to be hugely popular —among whom? We have no idea.
On the somewhat more sophisticated side, Stuart Weitzman will be opening his third Manhattan boutique this Fall on Upper Broadway in the 70s not far from Barneys Co-op. Weitzman is clearly taking advantage of more favorable rental conditions as his label continues to excel at interpreting contemporary shoe trends at somewhat gentler prices than Manolo and Louboutin as well as fuller size ranges. This looks like a solid move, but wouldn't the more stylish Stuart Weitzman be rather more at home on West Broadway than Onesole, which might fit in better with Upper Broadway's fairly eclectic mix?
We take it back. Weitzman is probably preferable in both locations. We're pretty sure that Onesole is somewhat misplaced down the street from M Missoni and a block from Chanel. Everyone loves to knock SoHo as a big mall, but We don't think is has gotten quite that bad...until now.
Onesole 438 West Broadway between Prince and Spring Streets
A First Look At Hollister
WWD has the first glimpse inside the new "Epic" Hollister flagship set to open Thursday in SoHo (It's the big event of the week, so expect to hear a lot about it between now and then). Included in an interview with A&F CEO Michael Jeffries, we can see the dramatic cast iron staircase that will presumably be a centerpiece of the four-level, 40,000 square foot store. Jeffries promises a lavish interior composed of surf shacks with video screens throughout the store bringing beach footage to SoHo. Think of it as California by way of Columbus, Ohio. As usual, there will be no less than two shirtless models in board shorts to greet customers at the front door, and plenty of nubile "salesmodels" inside (fair hiring practices be damned).
Like any CEO, Jeffries is all smiles and good news, though Abercrombie & Fitch's same store sales numbers continue slump in the double digits across the board, including those at the Fifth Avenue flagship, and a variety of analysts chime in with their (mostly predictable) observations that while the company is finally starting to respond to its slowing business, it may not be doing enough to offer newness and otherwise adapt to customers' changing tastes and demands.
Jeffries confirms that the Hollister brand's international expansion hinges on the success of this new flagship, but don't expect any opening day promotions. It'll be full-price all the time at the flagship stores, because, really, who's looking for a sale these days anyway... right?
A&F Stays on Message With Global Strategy (WWD)
Hollister (Official Site) & Ride The Wave (SoHo Epic Store Site)
It's Official (Almost)
Marc Takes Biography Bookshop
We have been speculating over the fate of the Biography Bookshop space for a while, and the building's owner has confirmed to WWD what many suspected: Marc Jacobs will be moving in to open an as yet unannounced new concept store. Jacobs President Robert Duffy hinted several months ago that there were expansion plans afoot on Bleecker Street, but offered no specific details, and the company is still mum on the topic. Reportedly, the designer's lease on the enviable 500 square foot corner shop at 400 Bleecker will begin in February 2010, which suggests that a new store will be open next Spring, making a whopping six freestanding stores for Jacobs in the West Village —four of them on Bleecker.
As for the bookshop, as reported before, it will be moving further east on Bleecker and renaming itself Bookbook.
Marc Jacobs Set for Another Store on Bleecker by Sharon Edelson (WWD)
Previously, Extended Relocations: Biography Bookshop Transitions Down The Street
Jil Has A New Label
+J At UNIQLO This Fall
OK, Technically this is not a collaboration because Jil Sander is actually a UNIQLO employee, but WWD has announced that her special collection for the Japanese retailer now has a title. +J will grace the discreet labels of the line when it makes its début at UNIQLO flagships this fall. Because Sander's actual name is owned by Onward Holdings Co. Ltd. which produces the Jil Sander label, the company and designer had to think up something that would refer to her as a person without directly referencing her name. Longtime Jil customers may remember that at one point her labels included a faint plus sign, which may serve as a subtle reference, but not likely enough to cause legal action.
As for the logo design, it resembles an abstracted winking smile, which is an unusually cheery image for the normally severe and minimal Sander, but fits in well with UNIQLO's upbeat aesthetic. Hangtags will include the message:
We're such UNIQLO and Jil Sander fans that this counts as big news for us. So far no pictures have been released yet, so, except for the tiny glimpse of a trim shirt-collar at right, we can only guess what the final product will look like for now.
In our mind it's looking totally fabulous.
Jil Sander's Collection For Uniqlo Will Be Called +J (WWD)
The Scaffolding Shrinks
As Hollister Reveals Itself
Even as it dissolves its ill-fated Ruehl division, Abercrombie & Fitch is getting ready to open Manhattan's first taste of its still popular Hollister chain. The plywood at 600 Broadway has shrunken to barely a single story revealing a façade that is...not appreciably different from what the building looked like when it was a Pottery Barn aside from a coat of white paint.
The so called "Epic" flagship store is set to open in just over a week, and the question here is not so much what to expect (we have a pretty good handle on their M.O. by now) but how much and to what degree?
We are well acquainted with the brand's boilerplate logo tees and flip flops by now, but are the "salesmodels" all going to be as gorgeous as we have come to expect? Will the older and somewhat less stunning still be banished to the stockrooms? How earsplitting will the music be? Will they be able to whip up a Topshop level of interest and frenzy? Giveaways? Well, that's probably a no on those last two.
Hollister's "Ride The Wave" mini site has a short film offering, along with the usual toned torsos, glimpses of the store's proposed interior which promises to be a beachy marvel of set design and art direction. It is, let's face it, atmosphere and ambiance that is the Abercrombie organization's real contribution to the retail business.
Hollister opens on Thursday, July 16th.
Eating Trumps Seeing
At Grand Central Terminal
Apparently, what Grand Central Terminal needed was cupcakes.
Sure, there are already plenty of cupcakes in that place between all the any food shops inside, but none of them are cupcake specialists. That's where Crumbs comes in. With 10 shops in Manhattan already, this location in the Graybar Building on Lexington Avenue is one of three in the works for the city.
it takes the place of the displaced For Eyes Optical. We know, the place should have been closed for the name alone, but with several competitors nearby, there's no shortage of eyewear in the neighborhood.
After all, you only need so many pairs of glasses, but cupcakes, you can eat those very day! Crumbs has been aggressively expanding throughout New York, (and the U.S.) far overtaking rivals and original cupcake proselytizers Magnolia Bakery and Buttercup Bake Shop. Pricey sweets are apparently weathering the economy quite nicely.
While not technically in the terminal, Crumbs' arrival joins several changes on that side of Grand Central, particularly in the Lexington Avenue Corridor shopping arcade where stores have recently been shuffling now that leases dating from the station's renovation in the '90s have come up for renewal. The switch is on to bigger shops and more recognizable brands as L'Occitane and Tumi have hopped the aisle for more room leaving space for a M·A·C makeup store to open soon right next to a unit from fellow Estée Lauder brand Origins that has also been relocated. While trendier neighborhoods that until recently were considered hot (Lower East Side anyone?) continue to slide, nothing beats a good commuter location.
Crumbs (Official Site)
Jimmy Choo X H&M Coming This Fall
Including Label's First Clothes
They say that cheap shoes will ruin even the most well assembled outfit, but Jimmy Choo is out to disprove that maxim this Fall.
On November 14th, H&M will release its latest collaboration collection with the luxury shoe label in only 200 stores (several of which are likely to be in Manhattan). The collection will include shoes, bags and accessories for men and women as well as clothing, a category the brand is neither known for nor, as far as we know, has ever produced at all.
Like Matthew Williamson, whose recent H&M collaboration includes his first menswear, Jimmy Choo appears to be using H&M to test the waters for potential product expansions.
More importantly, we will all be looking to see if H&M will be able to successfully translate Choo's opulent designs at what will have to be a dramatically lower price point.
Reserve your places in line now.
H&M to Collaborate with Jimmy Choo by Miles Socha (WWD)
Nespresso Builds A Big Coffee Palace
At Prince & Mercer
The ersatz cast iron building at the corner of Prince and Mercer Streets has been only briefly bereft of inhabitants since it was vacated by L'Occitane and O & Co. earlier this Spring. It will soon be reborn as a lavish lounge featuring Nespresso's espresso. The space is being reconfigured into a sleek coffee bar featuring portraits of Hollywood stars created from the brand's various color coded coffee capsules, and we are guessing that there will be a retail component to the shop featuring espresso machines in all their permutations. No word yet on how Jack Nicholson feels about his image being re-created in espresso capsules. Grace Kelly, seen in the above picture, presumably will be less concerned.
We would be more excited if The Shophound ever actually drank coffee, but we are confident that SoHo caffeine junkies will lining up when the place opens in a few weeks.
Generra To Step Into
Village Gourmet's MePa Space
Anyone concerned that the former Village Gourmet space at 823 Washington Street would be sitting empty for long can rest assured that by Fall it will be filled and the Meatpacking District's shopping strip will continue unbroken. Generra will be opening a 1,200 square foot store, its first U.S. boutique, in the space conveniently located near the entrance to the new High Line Park. This means that, unfortunately, the neighborhood will be short one deli, but you will be able to pick up a jaunty, Autumn outfit to wear while strolling the former elevated rails. It's a trade off, but you probably didn't need that snack anyway.
In other Generra news, while the label is still without a main creative director, today's WWD reports that Obedient Sons founder Swaim Hutson will collaborate with the brand for the Spring 2010 collection –good news for fans of that recently defunct label.
Generra Plans First U.S. Store (WWD)
