Victoria Beckham is launching her first flagship store at 36 Dover Street: a three-story, 6,040-square-foot space right across from London's famed Dover Street Market. The walls are white, the stairs are polished concrete with gold rails, and there are vast amounts of space between the wooden and mirrored furniture. As for the apparel, this is hung on gold chains from the ceiling. It's the first retail project architect Farshid Moussavi has ever taken on - he is known for Museums of Contemporary Art.
The store houses Beckham's expanding range of ready-to-wear, denim, accessories, eyewear and her diffusion Victoria Victoria Beckham line. Although it is unmistakably a high-end boutique, Beckham wanted the store to feel warm as well as modern. "I don't want people to feel scared to come into the shop, I want everyone to feel welcome and comfortable." Although there is a lot of space, the walnut wood used in the furniture and on the hangers helps off set this.
The decision to open a store in London came as a surprise to some, seeing as Beckham shows at New York Fashion Week and has her biggest client base is in the U.S. However, Beckham was adamant her store would be opened in England. She explains; "You know I'm from London, I'm very proud to be British, so for me there was no doubt I would want to open my first store here. My studio is here, my offices are here." She teased that America may be next and she also confirmed that there are no plans for her line to rejoin the London Fashion Week calendar anytime soon.
