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We've been excited for Aritzia to finally open its doors since we first visited the shop-in-shop held in their showroom above the Soho flagship, and we got even more excited when we watched that dreamy video of their signage going up. Well, today's the day, folks! This morning, we stopped by the store before it opened to the public at noon for a look inside.
The shop is two stories tall and is gargantuan in comparison to their Canadian flagship. When you first walk in, Wilfred— arguably Aritzia's most popular line—dominates the front. Silk tunics, drapey cloaks, and printed tanks line the entire first half of the store, while cotton bra-tops and other basics from Wilfred Free are displayed on tables. A walk to the back will lead you to the more West Coast-inspired lines, Talulah and TNA, which are composed of bright tanks, leggings, and casual wear. Designed with a younger girl in mind, the lines might not fare as well for Soho's New York shoppers, but there's certainly a market for both brands (read: cute, young tourist).
Upstairs is the boutique. Witchy brand A Moveable Feast is blacks and grays with some neutral creams thrown in for good measure. The line is drapey and a little androgynous, and is something like a (cheaper) Helmut Lang and Rick Owens hybrid. And then there's Le Fou, which is kind of like the Chloé of Aritzia: Think of a seafoam green, pale cream and coral color palette, with lots of silk pants and ankle-length skirts. T. Babaton is also upstairs, a line exclusive to Aritzia that caters to a young, working professional who doesn't want to buy a suit at Club Monaco, full of tailored blazers and (fun) office-appropriate attire.
Putting the clothes aside for just a second (and trust us, there's a ton of them), one thing that stands out is the work that went into decorating the space. But would you expect much less from a store that draped its entire front in signage so as not to appear sloppy during construction? Before entering the fitting rooms on the first floor, there's a giant hand-carved hand crossing its fingers, sitting on a bed of crystals. We overheard one of the Aritzia employees explain that it was meant to give shoppers some good luck before entering the fitting rooms. In front of the carving, there's also a table straight out of the Discover Channel store, with edges that bear open geodes.
The store is massive and we probably could have spent all day shopping inside of it if we didn't have to, oh, get back to work and write about it. Our guess is that there will most likely be a pretty big crowd on opening day, as we saw a bunch of shoppers attempt to crash the preview this morning.
· Watch Aritzia's Signage Go Up in this Dreamy New Video [Racked NY]
· Aritzia Gets a Jump Start on Their Upcoming Soho Flagship [Racked NY]
· Aritzia [Official Site]
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