Pierpaolo Piccioli’s tenure at Valentino has been outlined by flights of craft and creativeness; an astute use of color; a pursuit of magnificence which finds its roots within the Roman home’s beginnings in couture dressmaking.
A brand new style retailer idea – titled ‘The New Maison’ – epitomises this method, which has launched in Jeddah, Madrid, Venice and Shanghai, earlier than arriving in Paris, New York and different worldwide areas within the coming yr. It has been conceived in a collaboration between Piccioli and Valentino CEO Jacopo Venturini, the imaginative and prescient of which is revealed this week.
‘A New Maison’: Pierpaolo Piccioli and Jacopo Venturini on Valentino’s new retailer idea
A ceramic characteristic by Massimiliano Pipolo
(Picture credit score: Courtesy of Valentino)
‘[We wanted] a retailer idea that was genuine and embodied what the model is as we speak,’ Piccioli solely tells Wallpaper* of this new method to retail design. ‘A model that doesn’t change its codes and its id, however that should translate the values of couture right into a language linked to the areas, structure and design of the shop.
‘The idea represents Valentino’s id as a maison de couture with an inside design which displays the home’s artisanal method – an expression of our Italian heritage and savoir-faire,’ he continues. ‘It’s an evolution, going through the occasions we live in. Bodily shops are areas the place you must painting your organization id.’
Provides Venturini: ‘Maison for me stands for the concept of residence, a welcoming place that’s related to intimacy, uniqueness, a client-centric mindset, and inclusivity. Couture, as a substitute, represents mastery, care, creativity, one-on-one relationships, and obsession with particulars.’
A nonetheless from The Artisans
(Picture credit score: Courtesy of Valentino, directed by Terraneo )
Of this artisanal method, ‘The New Maison’ will centre round distinct parts of craft, undertaken by worldwide craftspeople. These would possibly embody Massimiliano Pipolo’s handmade ceramics (which characteristic in a particular movie to coincide with the mission, The Artisans, which may be watched beneath), Fabio Cinti’s geometric compositions in brass, or chandeliers by famend French mobilier Alexandre Logé in sculpted plaster. Furnishings consists of Mario Bellini’s recognisable 1970-design ‘Camaleonda’ sofas for B&B Italia – right here in new bespoke tones – in addition to rugs by Milanese carpet-maker Golran.
‘The maison comes from couture, but additionally from all of the tales of the those who have contributed to its success,’ says Piccioli. ‘It was necessary not solely to translate this into an area that represented the richness of couture, however to convey couture as an expertise, uniqueness and care. [It is why] there’s the craftsmanship of artisans similar to Pipolo – who created the doorknobs – or Cinti, who created the brass cabinets the place the equipment are on show.’
On redesigning the retail expertise, Piccioli notes the significance of ‘Italian hospitality’ – ‘a extra intimate and experiential method to make folks really feel engaged’ – in addition to noting that the purchasing expertise is one dictated by emotion. ‘The identical degree of values and uniqueness [as our runway shows] must be represented within the shops. The style present is after all the very best degree of picture and of the emotion raised inside the viewers, however we have to have the capability of translating the identical emotion inside the retailer, with out making a predetermined language that weakens it.’
Items from Valentino’s Pink PP assortment
(Picture credit score: Courtesy of Valentino)
’By conceiving an intimate house with a homey really feel, we wished to place the shopper on the centre – much like how one does when entertaining company add residence,’ says Venturini. ‘It’s the obsession with particulars, care and the intimate relationship with the shopper – all synonyms of couture that trickle all the way down to the boutiques. The shop turns into a spot of dialogue, a group for a heterogeneous clientele from longtime loyal purchasers to new followers.
‘As we proceed to evolve the model in direction of an more and more human- and client-centric method, embracing a extra intimate retail dimension and immersive expertise, we wished a retailer idea that mirrored this new imaginative and prescient.’
Piccioli has typically cited the significance of individuality in his output for the home; his current A/W 2022 assortment was crafted in the identical shade of pink (a brand new Pantone shade, Valentino Pink PP) in an try to spotlight the person personalities of the wearer (different collections have featured fashions of varied ages and physique sizes). He hopes that these new shops – every tailor-made to their location – have an identical feeling of uniqueness.
‘There are not any predetermined guidelines [to the new concept], however relatively guidelines which are rewritten each time differently, whereas sustaining the traits which make the areas acquainted,’ he says. ’Every retailer turns into a brand new residence and an intimate place to welcome people, inserting human connections on the coronary heart.
‘What I like about our home – as a result of that is how I take into account Valentino, an actual home – is its consistency with the previous that doesn’t preclude evolution. We inhabit the up to date whereas staying true to our previous, with no nostalgia – solely ardour.
‘The brand new retailer idea units a section for a brand new starting and widens the tradition of couture all over the world.’
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Supply: Wallpaper
