3.1 Phillip Lim to open Arts District concept store in downtown Los Angeles
3.1 Phillip Lim is making a comeback to the Los Angeles retail scene — its previous L.A. store on Robertson Boulevard closed last year — with a new concept opening in the buzzy downtown L.A. Arts District at the end of April. The 5,000-square-foot store, located at 734 East 3rd Street, will carry the women’s and men’s ready-to-wear and accessories and footwear collections.
The “new concept” part of it isn’t the collections being carried, but rather a residential-meets-gallery-meets studio vibe that has been a retail trend of late. Lim’s store was designed in collaboration with New York-based retail designer Kate McCullough and New York-based architecture firm MR Architecture + Decor to reflect its surroundings and harness the prized L.A. light.
In addition, the store will feature partnerships on non-fashion items designed by like-minded brands including Apparatus, Patrick Parrish Gallery, M. Crow, and Li Inc. It could be an end table, a light fixture or tabletop items, designed or curated with the residential feel of the space in mind.
“This is a concept store where conversations can happen. It’s different from a lifestyle store as the curation is the opposite of ‘everything you need in your life.’ In the times we currently live in, I have never felt fashion to be so ‘unfashionable.’ Instead of perpetuating the impossibility of ‘what’s next, what’s hot,’ we decided to return to the simple pleasures of ‘desire’” said Lim, creative director and cofounder of the brand.
Added Wen Zhou, chief executive officer and cofounder, “With our independence and challenger spirit in hand, we are exploring what experiential retail means to us as a brand. We have always operated on gut and instinct — this was the case when we pioneered the modern luxury market over a decade ago and this is the case with retail conversations we have today — so taking a chance and saying “why not?” is a familiar attitude for both Phillip and I. Our customer is growing up and the retail landscape is changing with him and her. The opening of our L.A. Arts District concept store is an opportunity for us to create a deeper connection and to engage in a meaningful dialogue with our clients about the things they are passionate about today.”
The L.A. store will bring the number of global free-standing stores to 17; in the U.S. that includes Great Jones Street in New York and Bal Harbour Shops in Miami. The next location to open, included in that total, will be in Tokyo’s Ginza Six luxury shopping center, opening April 20.
ALSO
Fred Segal opens third Japanese location in Kobe
