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Burberry plans to open flagship store on Rodeo Drive next year

Burberry is slated to take over a Rodeo Drive space currently occupied by luxury menswear line Ermenegildo Zegna. Above, a model walks the runway at the Burberry show during Milan Fashion Week.
Burberry is slated to take over a Rodeo Drive space currently occupied by luxury menswear line Ermenegildo Zegna. Above, a model walks the runway at the Burberry show during Milan Fashion Week.
(Vittorio Zunino Celotto / Getty Images)
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Swanky Rodeo Drive is getting a new occupant as British brand Burberry brings its oft-copied tartan patterns and popular trench coats to the upscale Beverly Hills shopping strip.

The brand is expected to bring its a new flagship store to Southern California in 2014 after recently launching outposts in London, Hong Kong and Chicago.

The London chain was founded in 1856. It is slated to open in a space currently occupied by luxury menswear line Ermenegildo Zegna. The company already has another store in Beverly Hills on Wilshire Boulevard.

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But Burberry is arriving with more than just shades of tan. The new store will blur the physical and digital, according to the company, starting with so-called smart personalization efforts.

Products ordered off the autumn/winter 2013 runway can be customized with an engraved nameplate. When placed in contact with touch screen devices, embedded technology works to open a “bespoke digital experience.”

That means a shopper carting a Burberry tote fresh out of Fashion Week can pull up artist sketches, runway edits and and details about the piece’s craftsmanship on a smartphone. In its London store, customers will even be able to trigger the content on massive mirrors, which morph into screens.

Then there’s Burberry Bespoke, in which online shoppers can generate a unique trench coat through 12 million combinations.

And in stores, employees will begin using iPads to access detailed customer profiles and product data, according to the company.

The retail industry is nursing a growing infatuation with technology. Virtual fitting rooms featuring size-matching machines are being installed in malls nationwide, allowing customers to find clothing that fits without shimmying in and out of samples.

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Macy’s recently said that it’s hoping to lure more Millennials into its stores in part by boosting its omni-channel shopping experience, creating a seamless segue between its network of physical locations, online websites, mobile devices and more.

Saks brought iPads into stores and tried out “buy online, ship from store” offerings.

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