Friday is always a nice time to treat yourself with a little shopping spree, so fashionistas looking for the latest buzz won't want to miss this fashion forward news.
According to Reuters, affluent travelers are spurring retailers to expand their presence in high-end airports around the world. Travel retail has long been a fixture for brands like Estée Lauder and LVMH's Louis Vuitton. But sales at airports and other travel venues have risen far more quickly in recent years than at regular stores for many chains, putting this area of retailing front and center in many companies' expansion plans. Chains with few such stores are adding new ones: Tiffany & Co is set to open a second store in Singapore's Changi this year and one at Berlin's new airport next year, bringing the jeweler's total to eight, while Swiss luxury watchmaker Hublot, which is also part of LVMH, is eyeing Frankfurt's airport. And in the U.S., Estée Lauder Co's M.A.C. and Brookstone Inc opened stores at the splashy $1.4 billion international terminal in Atlanta that opened in May.
French Riviera-bound? Summer revelers in Saint-Tropez can add a splash of color to the Riviera beach scene with a bathing suit from Pantone Beachwear. The first boutique of its kind has popped up at 45 rue du Vieux-Port, offering four styles of mens’s trunks (and a boy-short for women) in 25 vibrant Pantone hues. (Madame Figaro swoons over the Hawaiian Ocean blue and the Tangerine Tango red.) The collection was designed and produced under license by Fashion Factory.
And if you happen to be in town for the Olympics, fashion-savvy shopaholics who are eager to hit up some of London’s fine stores will be interested in a new program from The Ritz. The luxury hotel has teamed up with Thomas Pink to offer a personalized shopping spree around town. After plotting out a London shopping itinerary with the Ritz concierge, guests will hop in Thomas Pink’s new custom-made chauffeur-driven classic Morgan. Stop for a glass of Champagne in the Thomas Pink flagship store, then shop til you drop on a two-hour tour through Mayfair and beyond.
And finally, great news for shopaholics in New York: Reuters is reporting that Nordstrom will open its first department store in New York City in 2018, ending a 25-year search for a prime spot in town. We hear the store will cover 285,000 square feet and occupy seven stories at the base of what will become Manhattan's tallest residential building, to be built on 57th Street near 7th Avenue.