PROJECT HISTORY
The challenge
Saks Fifth Avenue sought a designer to help revitalize the former Barney’s building into a flagship store in Beverly Hills.
Saks Fifth Avenue Beverly Hills
Revitalizing an iconic retail space through design
The solution
Our design focuses on paying homage to its storied past while aligning with the Saks design language.
The impact
The flagship store's design highlights personalized services and Saks design language while retaining the building's historic characteristics.
287,430 sq ft
of redesigned space
The challenge
Saks Fifth Avenue has reinvented its West Coast flagship experience with the opening of its highly anticipated new women's store on Wilshire Boulevard. The SaksFifth Avenue Store Planning and Design team collaborated with Arcadis (formerly CallisonRTKL) to transform the store and bring Saks Fifth Avenue's distinct brand identity to life while paying tribute to the building's history.
While the exterior of the building remains largely untouched to allow the iconic architecture to shine, the 130,000 SF interior has undergone a complete transformation with upgrades to the materials, finishes, and textures. The store will boast 30 vendor shops, including Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, and Dior, along with an exclusive personal shopping experience called the Fifth Avenue Club, reinforcing the luxury retailer's commitment to providing unique and highly personalized experiences for its clientele.
The solution
The project’s design theme focuses on incorporating new reflective textures and rugs with different subdued colors to infuse the store with its own unique personality. The upgraded walls maintain the original textured walls from the Barneys store, but a fresh coat of metallic paint revitalizes them. Although the original tiles and floor remain untouched, new rugs have been added to the store.
Customers arriving at the store can enjoy the convenience of on-site valet or underground parking, complete with new electric vehicle charging. The store's lower and first levels will showcase a wide array of handbags, shoes, and accessories. The design team elevated the existing wall panels with vibrant colors and reflective surfaces to create an inviting and visually appealing space. The first floor features new large rugs, artistic adornments, and more tables and pedestals to provide a distinctly organic feel. As customers navigate the store, they will be drawn into the atrium, featuring striking art installations and ever-changing seasonal displays that infuse the space with a unique and distinct character. The atrium serves as a guide for customers, leading them through the entire building, from the lower level to the fifth floor.
The impact
In total, the building has a square footage of 287,430. The breakdown of the square footage on each floor is as follows: the lower level 23,340; level one 23,340; level two 16,523; level three 15,419; level four 16,419; level five, 14,277; and the remaining 186,448 consists of the parking level, circulations, elevators and more.
The Saks Fifth Avenue flagship store in Beverly Hills is poised to set the gold standard in luxury retail. While paying homage to the iconic building, the interior has been updated to align with the Saks design language. The design goals aim to highlight personalized services, VIP experiences, strategic vendor partnerships, and bespoke events that are all expectations of high-profile clients in the area.
