At Chanel's new Beverly Hills boutique, its largest in the U.S. at a grand 30,000 square feet, the brand's timeless motifs—lush strings of pearls, nipped tweed, bold and elegant hardware—lie at the heart of the space's design ethos. The new space, which opens its doors for the first time today, was designed by frequent Chanel collaborator Peter Marino and serves as an homage to the House's rich legacy, its current status in popular culture under the guidance of Karl Lagerfeld, and its future as envisioned by Virginie Viard. Built around a central courtyard that is home to the François-Xavier Lalanne sculpture Wapiti, 2007, the space unfolds across four floors: the first, a glistening white space that offers clients the chance to peruse the brand's latest Handbag, Watches & Fine Jewelry, and Fragrance collections; the second houses shoes and Ready-to-Wear; the third boasts two VIP salons; and the fourth opens up into a penthouse and a trellised rooftop reminiscent of Los Angeles's famed Case Study houses.
Connecting these spaces is Golden Lasso, 2023, a Jean-Michel Othoniel installation that cascades from the fourth floor down to the first. The house commissioned the French contemporary artist to create a piece that would conjure the impression that one of Coco Chanel's strings of pearls was spilling through the brand-new space.
Chanel's quintessential aesthetic codes and gestures are notable at every level, and intermingle with works of historic import and legendary provenance—black-and-gold lacquered Edo-period Japanese cabinets, a contemporary Ingrid Donat coffee table, and a set of "Tweed" lamps by Delos & Ubiedo. Across the building, Chanel has displayed a steel sculpture by the late Tony Rosenthal, a piece by the young American artist Hugo McCloud, two works by abstract Indian artist Prabhavathi Meppayil, a sculpture from the Canadian Erin Shirreff, several works by the German artist Vera Lutter, a commisioned piece from the Israeli artist Michal Rovner, among many others.
The store will open with Viard's Spring/Summer 2023 Ready-to-Wear collection—a constellation of looks inspired by Alain Resnais’s surrealist 1961 film, Last Year at Marienbad. To mark the occasion of the boutique's opening, Chanel will also present four exclusive collections to celebrate the brand’s storied Hollywood history. An Haute Joaillerie capsule collection, titled "Beverly Hills," features sun and star motifs (a Lucky Star ring directly references the Walk of Fame), reportedly a favorite motif of the House’s founder. The store will offer a Beverly Hills Edition Monsieur watch exclusive to the location and part of the brand’s new Haute Horlogerie capsule, of which only five designs have been made.
Despite its dazzling architecture and fresh design, Chanel's new space is steeped in the brand's generations-deep ethos and bears marks of all those who have shaped it along the way. The boutique opens its doors just in time for Chanel's highly-anticipated 2024 Cruise collection, which will be unveiled on May 9.
