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Mad About Madison
Ralph Lauren now has two madison Avenue mansions.
The designer will today unveil his first women's flagship an imposing, 22,000-square-foot Beaux Arts building at 888 Madison Avenue that was built from scratch across the street from his Rhinelander Mansion. Just like his first flagship, which is now a men's-only store, the new women's one has all the ingredients to become a retail icon.
Where the Rhinelander store presented the world with one of the first branded retail environments when it opened 25 years ago, the new mansion makes the ultimate case for luxury, from the French neoclassical architecture with an Indiana limestone facade, to the grand marble staircase that sweeps through the four floors and paneling and moldings that give the salons a residential, Parisian feel.
That said, the scale of the store and the extensive assortment is much more than just an exercise in luxury retailing.
This is really a statement about what I have to say today and how the company has grown, Lauren said during an exclusive walk-through on Tuesday afternoon. I started out working out of a drawer in the Empire State Building. I didn't even have an office. I started with the tie, and little by little, I added product. Then I launched women's wear.
Polo Ralph Lauren is now a global company with sales of $10 billion, a significant focus on freestanding retail and a women's and accessories business that has become instrumental in the company's growth. The women's store is emblematic of that growth. Under one roof, it showcases Lauren's Collection, Black Label, Blue Label and RLX, as...