In all the fuss over
Kate Moss and
The Metropolitan Museum Party of the Year, hardly anyone noticed that
Diane von Furstenberg finally (and quietly) opened the doors of her flagship boutiqe at 14th and Washington Streets in the Meatpacking District.
She may have opted for the stealth opening because the store is not, in fact, quite finished. Note the random bits of electrical equipment on the floor in the picture above. Why the rush to open, we wonder? It seems like the store would be ready with just a few days more work, and for a designer who has done a masterful job of rebuilding her brand and career, it's an odd misstep to throw open the doors of such a high-profile project before everything has been completed.
There are a few surprises here. We were expecting the store to occupy
at least one complete floor of the large building von Furstenberg
purchased, if not more, but it actually takes up only a portion of the
ground floor. It is partitioned, but not completely sealed off from
the reception area to the designer's headquarters and design studio
which, apparently, is what will occupy the bulk of the building's
space. The boutique entrance is actually on lower profile Washington rather than 14th Street, which, again, seems like a surprising choice. The open design allows for a delightful shopping soundtrack of
drills and hammering punctuated by an occasional sawing riff, as other
parts of the renovation are much further from completion. Once
everything is done, we expect the store will be a popular
destination, though the staff appeared to express the nonchalance of those who know they have a product that sells itself, and therefore don't have to knock themselves out. In addition to a full selection of Von Furstenberg's own
label's goods, they also are carrying precious jewelry from the designer's
collection for H.Stern as well additional footwear from Christian
Louboutin. We have to say, however that though the store looks promising, we were actually expecting something a little bigger and more dramatic for a flagship store. Perhaps we will take another look when everything is actually complete.
Diane von Furstenberg 874 Washington Street, Meatpacking District.
