Shoes Play a Starring Role in Saks Fifth Avenue’s New Beverly Hills Store Flagship
Saks Fifth Avenue is moving into a new home in Beverly Hills, featuring an expanded shoe department that is nearly double the size of its previous women’s location.
According to the luxury retailer, it will open the doors to its brand-new, relocated women’s store on Thursday, Feb. 8 inside the former Barneys New York flagship at 9570 Wilshire Blvd. The new store replaces Saks’ former Beverly Hills women’s shopping destination just one block away. The men’s store, located at 9634 Wilshire Blvd., will remain open.
Spanning 130,000 square feet across six floors, the retailer’s new West Coast flagship store features women’s designer ready-to-wear, handbags, jewelry, beauty, accessories and an impressive shoe department.
Coming in at 5,000 sq.-ft, the new footwear space nearly doubles Saks Fifth Avenue’s shoe-selling space in Beverly Hills. The shoe floor features lounge seating areas that were designed to encourage socialization and exploration.
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For Tracy Margolies, chief merchandising officer at Saks, the goal is to make the floor the “ultimate destination” for women’s footwear in Beverly Hills. “The new shoe experience serves as the anchor of the main floor of the new store and reflects Saks Fifth Avenue’s strong focus on our footwear business,” Margolies told FN in an interview. “Our assortment in Beverly Hills was thoughtfully curated with our Beverly Hills customer in mind.”
Highlights of the retailer’s shoe assortment include styles from Aquazzura, Chanel, Christian Louboutin, Dior, Gucci, Manolo Blahnik, Prada and Valentino. New brands to the Beverly Hills shoe floor include The Attico, Celine, Gabriela Hearst, Jil Sander, Loewe and Toteme.
Asked what trends resonate with their Beverly Hills clients, Margolies highlighted the area’s fashion-forward customer base. “Our Beverly Hills customers love to be the first to have access to shoes that have walked the runways in Paris and Milan,” she noted. “They are also known to be a fashion-forward clientele who are not afraid of a high heel and bold colors.”
Along with its new shoe experience, the store’s main floor features handbag shops from brands including Balenciaga, Bottega Veneta, Celine, Fendi, Givenchy, Loewe and Valentino. Throughout the store, significant boutique spaces are also dedicated to Chanel, Dior, Gucci and Louis Vuitton.
“These distinctive boutiques give our customers the opportunity to access intimate brand experiences within Saks Fifth Avenue,” Margolies added. “On the fifth floor, an expanded Fifth Avenue Club personal shopping and styling experience features an exclusive outdoor terrace with stunning views of the Hollywood Hills – the perfect place for Fifth Avenue Club clients to relax and unwind while they shop.”
Designed in collaboration with the Saks Fifth Avenue store planning and design team and retail architects and advisors at Arcadis (formerly CallisonRTKL), the store aims to bring the retailer’s brand identity to life while paying tribute to the building’s history.
This can be seen with the preservation of the store’s grand Regency-style marble staircase and central skylight that accentuate the white atrium spaces and reflective columns on each floor. Other design details include metallic accents and playful pops of color including richly hued rugs, statement furniture pieces and vibrant wall coverings.
Overall, the opening marks a significant moment for Saks as the retailer doubles down on the market.
“Los Angeles has become one of the most exciting and influential fashion destinations,” Margolies said. “We are seeing leading luxury brands hosting runway shows in L.A., incredible emerging talent coming out of L.A., and the relationship between the fashion industry and Hollywood continues to grow stronger.”
