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SINGAPORE: Most merchants would be thrilled about having a queue snaking out of their stores, but Jean-Baptiste Debains, president of Louis Vuitton Asia Pacific, has a rather different view.
Referring to the queue that forms every day outside the Louis Vuitton boutique at Ngee Ann City, Mr Debains — speaking at the opening of the luxury brand’s latest store at Ion Orchard on Thursday — said: “We’re not happy about that, because we don’t think it’s a great experience if people have to wait.”
This, in part, helps to explain why the brand had few qualms about locating its newest 905 sqm, double-storey store just two doors down from its Ngee Ann City outlet — which will also expand to become a duplex later this year.
With a laugh, Mr Debains said: “Sure, if I could design the developments on Orchard Road, I would put (the two shopping centres) further from each other! But these two projects are among the most exclusive. It’s an active street and there is space for two stores.”
While the brand will continue to nurture its customer base at its Ngee Ann City boutique — where “business has been increasing year after year”, according to Mr Debains — it hopes to make the most of the high human traffic along Ion Orchard by creating an exceptionally inviting feel at its new store.
The boutique’s street-level curved glass façade — a first for the brand — was inspired by the folds of a scarf. One of Louis Vuitton’s largest custom-made facades worldwide, it comprises two groups of textured glass designed to mimic the brand’s famous Damier checkerboard pattern.
Like the exterior, the interiors have been designed to be exceptionally warm and inviting, with curved lines demarcating individual spaces such as men’s and women’s bag bars, a men’s section and a women’s section, each with its own set of soft furnishings.
These luxuriously comfy settings will certainly come in useful for shoppers who want to take their time examining the store’s wares, several of which are limited-edition pieces.
These include special Singapore Exclusives, which include ready-to-wear items — such as an amber evening trench coat — sunglasses, shoes and leather goods, some bearing the label “Louis Vuitton Orchard Road Singapore”. Sounds like those queues may just start forming all over again.
Louis Vuitton is located at #01-23, Ion Orchard.
- TODAY/ yt
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