LONDON — British fashion brand Karen Millen will plant its biggest flag in the U.S. this week with the opening of a 5,000-square-foot flagship at 587 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, near Rockefeller Center.
The store, which is set to open today, will be the brand’s second-largest worldwide, after a newly opened unit on London’s Brompton Road in Knightsbridge that measures 8,000 square feet. Like the Brompton Road unit, the New York store will carry the full collection.
The brand has worked with the East London firm Brinkworth Design on the new, flexible store concept that allows the environment to change with the seasons and mood of the collections.
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There is a double-height window facing Fifth Avenue, while the store itself covers the ground and mezzanine levels. The interiors are neutral with matte surfaces, and feature parquet, exposed brick, sandblasted white glass and textured stone.
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Double-height screens will display seasonal branded images as well as those from the ad campaign, which for fall has been shot by Glen Luchford.
There will be an accessories lounge on the ground floor, while the mezzanine will house the dressing rooms.
“We are all superexcited,” said Gemma Metheringham, Karen Millen’s chief creative officer. “We’re next to the new H&M, across from [the soon-to-open] Topshop and near Ted Baker.”
Over the past few seasons, the brand has undergone a big transformation: It’s been updated, with a focus on “all the different moods of a women’s wardrobe — from the very casual weekend, to the business suit to party,” said Metheringham, adding that the accessories and footwear offer has been sharpened, too.
For fall, key pieces include a limited-edition woven leather tote that appears in the ad campaign, a peep-toe shoe boot, and the Rockefeller, a limited-edition faux fur bag in a range of finishes that will be launched to mark the opening of the store.
Every piece in the Karen Millen collection is designed, cut and finished in the design studio, which is based in Shoreditch, London.
Karen Millen is fast making inroads into the U.S. It already has 13 stores, and 15 concessions at Bloomingdale’s, with a further five concessions set to open in 2014-15. Internationally, Karen Millen opened a unit in Canada in July and has plans to plant its retail flag in Norway, India and Taipei in 2014-15.
Mike Shearwood, chief executive officer, said the focus over the past five years has been on global expansion, and today about 70 percent of sales come from markets outside the U.K. “We trade in six continents from over 400 stores,” he said.
The company was founded in 1981 by Karen Millen and Kevin Stanford, and is now privately owned, with management among the shareholders.