MONSTER IN THE HOUSE: Gentle Monster, the South Korean luxury eyewear brand with only 22 stores around the world, will open a 3,500-square-foot shop at American Dream, the mega entertainment and retail complex in East Rutherford, N.J.
The Gentle Monster shop will be situated within American Dream’s luxury retail wing called The Avenue, which is scheduled to open Sept. 17 with Saks Fifth Avenue, Hermès, Saint Laurent, Dolce & Gabbana, Mulberry and several other luxury players. Gentle Monster will open “in the months to come,” and didn’t specify precisely when.
The unit will be the brand’s first in New Jersey and only its fourth in the U.S. The other Gentle Monster shops are in Manhattan’s SoHo neighborhood; Los Angeles and Santa Clara, Calif. The stores are unusual in that they exhibit theatrical interpretations of the future, the environment, technology and other life subjects utilizing artwork, robotics, video, landscaping and sculpture.
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Founded in 2011, Gentle Monster “embraces an experimental and boundary-pushing design philosophy,” and has put a premium on collaborating with designers, brands and artists, including Fendi, Ambush, Marine Serre, Alexander Wang, Jennie, Diplo, Kris Wu, Tilda Swinton and most recently Heron Preston.
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“We’re excited to open our new flagship at American Dream. The curated environment is a perfect fit for Gentle Monster as our brand has always been fixated on creating a memorable and unique experience for our customers,” Michael Lee, managing director of Gentle Monster, said in a statement.
“Gentle Monster’s cutting-edge design and future-thinking approach epitomize where luxury shopping is going,” said Don Ghermezian, chief executive officer of American Dream, in a statement.
Aside from its upcoming luxury wing, American Dream, developed by Triple Five Group, has moderate-priced retail stores such as H&M, Aritzia, Primark and Uniqlo, as well as Sephora, and extension entertainment attractions including the DreamWorks Water Park, Nickelodeon Universe Theme Park, Legoland Discovery Center, Sea Life Aquarium and the Big Snow Ski Hill. The complex still has some retail space to fill. Barneys New York and Lord & Taylor both intended to open large stores there but ended up shutting down their store chains.
