This is What Balmain’s New NYC Store Smells Like
Five decades after Pierre Balmain opened his first New York boutique on Madison Ave., Creative Director Olivier Rousteing and architects at Paris’ Studio AMV return to the shopping locale with the same fervor. At a time when many brands have left the area, Balmain’s new store, which opened yesterday at 650 Madison Avenue, brings fashion back to the block, and smells like leather, gunpowder, and black rose throughout. The scent encapsulates the brands glamour and femininity, as well as its deeply historical roots. The visuals of the store do the same.
The new boutique’s design is Rousteing’s love letter to New York City’s “one-of-a-kind style and flair,” serving not just as a retail destination, but an open gallery. Entering at 9 East 59th Street, visitors will first notice the porch, an expansive, all-black buffer between street and store used to highlight Rousteing’s favorite artists and ongoing campaigns. Further inside, it has more of a classic hôtel particulier structure, with individual rooms for each part of the Balmain universe, including ready-to-wear, bags, and accessories.
Of course, the store includes many Parisian touches, just with a modern twist. Among these is a new product that can be spotted around the store: Rousteing’s new collaboration with luxury candle brand Cire Trudon. It’s a spin off of Trudon’s smoky Ernesto Scent, an essential in the Balmain studio, with Rousteing and perfumer Emilie Bouge’s floral and feminine touch. The container is inspired by Balmain’s signature marinière, with stripes of gold leaf and black lacquer.
Other exclusive additions are the two, limited-edition BBuzz bags, inspired by the colors and graphics of airmail envelopes of the 1970’s, when Pierre Balmain opened the original Madison Avenue boutique. With NYC-inspired stamps and Maison Balmain’s return address, the bags are a further representation of the dynamic relationship between the brand’s Parisian roots and love of New York.
Balmain’s new NYC flagship store is now open at 650 Madison Avenue, New York.
