27 March 2025 |
Walking into Louis Vuitton’s latest Big Apple outpost is like stepping into the multiverse. Get ready to feast on all the superluxury brand has to offer.
New York City does not have a theme park. Nor does it need one, because it has Louis Vuitton. One of the only luxury labels that has truly earned the word “iconic,” the brand became famous in the late 19th century for building gorgeous steamer trunks. Now, it keeps its fame like any creative entity does—by building endless worlds for us to revel in and explore.
In New York, those fashion galaxies are mapped out by neighborhood. In graffiti-stamped Soho, a tidy Louis Vuitton arcade lets teenagers daydream of their first pochette while salespeople cheerily dole out Takashi Murakami–print clutches—and complimentary matcha lattes—to off-duty celebrities. Along the Hudson River, a history lesson: A glass- encased boutique features the brand’s heritage trunk designs, mere steps from where luxury passenger ships used to unload them onto carriages bound for the Fifth Avenue mansions of their owners. There is an LV atoll in Brookfield Place that serves as a serene, surreal oasis in the middle of the hectic financial district, where a precise line of $5,000 handbags is ready to affirm the status of executives in between power deals. Even inside the self-contained colonies of Bloomingdale’s, Macy’s, and Saks Fifth Avenue there are separate Louis Vuitton “store- in-stores,” which act as monogrammed city-states within continents of commerce. Rome has the pope. Herald Square has Nicolas Ghesquière.
Into the atlas of Terra Vuitton comes its temporary pop- up shop on Fifth Avenue—although calling it a pop-up is a little like saying Jesus is just covering the phones in heaven until his dad returns from lunch. The monogrammed paradise follows the five-word mantra of Louis Vuitton’s CEO and chair- man, Pietro Beccari: “Don’t think big. Think huge.” At 36,000 square feet and five floors, the hub is billed as “an ambitious temporary space” for all things Louis Vuitton. Located on
The interior of Le Café Louis Vuitton, featuring a library installation curated by Ian Luna
57th Street and Madison Avenue, the venue is a place where fans can experience up close Mr. Ghesquière’s runway creations and those from menswear creative director Pharrell. Pieces from current collections are there to see and touch, which helps deconstruct some of the fashion house’s more conceptual looks. Should the highest levels of Parisian design be “relatable”? Not necessarily, but it’s cool to see them available for contemplation, and the good-natured sales staff will pull pieces off their hangers to give the style-curious a closer look.
One can also treat the 57th Street locale as part of an uptown gallery hop. Among the showcased contemporary art: A color- scratched panel by the German abstract painter Emanuel Seitz, a shiny geometric print by Helsinki’s Niko Luoma, and graphic etchings by New York’s Caio Fonseca. The author Ian Luna curated a selection of 600 books that have been scattered across the space’s various shelves and surfaces, including titles by the fashion historian Laird Borrelli-Persson, interior designer Rose Tarlow, and poet Shel Silverstein. In a charming touch, picture books like The Cat in the Hat and Madeline are wedged on lower shelves so children can discover them. This being Louis Vuitton, some of the merchandise is also museum quality. Stephen Sprouse’s famous graffiti graphics (first seen in 2001) have their own walk-in displays, along with Murakami’s Kool-Aid-colored flowers and monogram remixes. The archi- tect Shohei Shigematsu, of OMA, has constructed several “trunk towers” that stack the brand’s heritage steamer designs in dizzying piles. Each one features 90 individual trunks and stands 52 feet tall. (Can’t quite picture it? Imagine three grown giraffes.)
Those who consider the perfect breakfast waffle to be high art are also in luck: On the fourth floor sits Le Café Louis Vuitton, a bistro from chef Christophe Bellanca of the Michelin-starred uptown restaurant Essential by Christophe, with desserts by Mary George, who helmed the pastries at the fine-dining staple Daniel. On the menu: Monogram Flower spinach ravioli, a burger featuring sirloin from the Pat LaFrieda butchery, and a chocolate entremet stamped with the famous LV logo and dusted with powdered cocoa. There is even a full drinks menu, so you can sip cappuccinos by the new Capucines bags. Cynthia Erivo, Martha Stewart, and Jennifer Connelly have all been spotted in the designer diner, but scoring a table is tricky: At the time of writing, Le Café is one of the most in-demand reservations in the world on the online table grabber Appointment Trader. A few walk-ins are available for visitors; ask nicely, and you might be in luck. There is also a takeaway option if you’re sweet on sweets: An alcove dedicated to Le Chocolat Maxime Frédéric has a Logomania praline box and a stack of mini steamer trunks rendered in chocolate-covered shortbread. You’ll also find a $45 jar of chocolate and hazelnut spread that could be called “Nutella, but make it fashion.”
These are rarified treats. Meanwhile, perhaps the true magic of Louis Vuitton’s kingdom is how it transforms regular stuff—a waterproof luggage case, for starters—into objects of supreme desire. In that way, it’s not a big surprise that in this corner of LV-land there are quotidian delights like dog bowls, coffee mugs, hair elastics, and jump ropes, all stamped with the monogram favored by global moguls. These everyday items are funhouse mirror images of Andy Warhol’s Brillo boxes and Campbell’s soup cans stashed at the Museum of Modern Art a few blocks away. In this world of luxury living à la Louis Vuitton, more is more… as long as it’s also the very best.
