Louis Vuitton bets big on Rodeo Drive with new Frank Gehry-designed store

Louis Vuitton is gearing up to spell implicit the apical again successful Beverly Hills.

With plans for an ultra-opulent edifice connected Rodeo Drive stymied by voters 2 years ago, the Paris manner house’s owners are backmost with a connection for a theatrical flagship store designed by designer Frank Gehry that would anchor the northbound extremity of the celebrated retail corridor.

Luxury goods stores connected Rodeo Drive are increasing larger arsenic top-shelf retailers progressively up the ante to dazzle shoppers, and the imaginativeness from Louis Vuitton proprietor LVMH is 1 of the biggest stores yet with restaurants, rooftop gardens and accumulation space.

Set to unfastened successful 2029 pending metropolis approval, the store volition agelong done the artifact from Rodeo Drive to Beverly Drive on South Santa Monica Boulevard. It volition beryllium 1 continuous operation connected crossed an alley by 2 pedestrian bridges and a tunnel.

Louis Vuitton said its caller store volition incorporate 45,000 quadrate feet connected the retail broadside fronting connected Rodeo Drive and an further 55,000 quadrate feet connected the hospitality-focused broadside of the gathering disconnected Beverly Drive.

“The caller determination volition instrumentality visitors into a afloat Louis Vuitton manner acquisition showcasing its divers universes of products and one-of-a-kind lawsuit experiences,” the institution said successful a statement.

The retail entranceway volition beryllium connected Rodeo Drive, with 3 floors dedicated to merchandise categories specified arsenic women’s and men’s collections, travel, watches and Jewelry, quality and fragrance. A rooftop level volition person backstage spaces for clients and a garden.

Pedestrians locomotion past a gathering astatine the intersection of Rodeo Drive and Santa Monica Boulevard successful Beverly Hills.

(Mel Melcon/Los Angeles Times)

Visitors entering from Beverly Drive volition find a cafe and accumulation lobby connected the crushed floor, 2 much floors of accumulation abstraction and a rooftop with a edifice and open-air terrace.

Louis Vuitton representatives declined to connection much details astir the exhibitions oregon the building, but the marque possibly champion known for its signature monogrammed handbags and luggage besides has made a estimation promoting creation and culture.

In 2014 it opened the Fondation Louis Vuitton successful Paris successful a gathering designed by Gehry. The Fondation has creation exhibits, concerts, creation performances and organized household activities specified arsenic creation classes for children.

Gehry has besides also collaborated with Louis Vuitton connected a postulation of handbags reflecting his architectural style, which is known for flowing, curvilinear sculptural forms.

In downtown Los Angeles, Gehry designed the Walt Disney Concert Hall, the Grand L.A. mixed-use analyzable crossed the thoroughfare and the adjacent Colburn School performing arts halfway nether construction.

The interior of Luis Vuitton’s Beverly Hills flagship is being designed by different well-known architect, Peter Marino, who designed the existing Louis Vuitton store connected Rodeo Drive and the ill-fated Cheval Blanc Beverly Hills edifice intended for the Rodeo Drive tract present selected for Louis Vuitton’s caller flagship.

New York-based Marino was described by Architectural Digest arsenic “a starring designer for the carriage trade, and the designer for manner brands.”

Marino erstwhile said the Chevel Blanc hotel, which was approved by the metropolis earlier being vetoed by voters, would amended the pedestrian acquisition connected the bluish borderline of Rodeo Drive’s famed buying district, wherever “people get to the end, motion their shoulders and locomotion back.”

The parcels intended for the edifice and present Louis Vuitton are owned by LVMH and were formerly occupied by Brooks Bros. and the Paley Center for Media. The existing unoccupied structures volition beryllium razed to marque mode for the caller store.

Merchants connected the celebrated three-block agelong of Rodeo Drive perpetually strive to find caller ways to telephone attraction to themselves and polish their brand’s image, said existent property broker Jay Luchs of Newmark Pacific, who works connected income and leases of high-end retail properties.

“It’s competitory among brands to ever beryllium the champion they tin be, and they’re not sitting connected spaces keeping them stale,” helium said. “They’re each ever reinventing themselves.”

The costly changes to their stores are “very obvious,” Luchs said. “It’s astir similar an art. The thoroughfare has antithetic apical designers who person made these stores spectacular 1 aft the other.”

Even though retail rents connected Rodeo Drive are immoderate of the highest successful the country, stores are besides getting bigger, the spot broker said.

Fifteen years ago, stores connected the thoroughfare were typically 25 feet wide, helium said, past gradually galore became 50 feet wide, helium said. “Now you’re seeing stores 100 feet wide” that whitethorn person 2 antithetic landlords.

A 50-foot batch is “very big,” Luchs said, and tin clasp a store with 5,000 quadrate feet connected each level and whitethorn spell 3 stories gangly for a full of 15,000 quadrate feet successful the store.

The manner location is besides increasing successful New York, wherever its flagship store is being replaced with a gathering that volition astir treble its footprint connected 57th Street astatine 5th Avenue, the Architects Newspaper said. Construction has been concealed with a facade that looks similar a elephantine stack of distinctive Louis Vuitton trunks.