The French fashion house continues to mark its return to the forefront of the fashion scene through its new sleek and all-white boutiques.
Trapeze miniskirts, PVC boots, vinyl jackets… André and Coqueline Courrèges’ brand, founded in 1961, with its revolutionary space-age lines, seems to be finally coming back in full force after the pandemic, with Nicolas Di Felice at the head of artistic direction. This young Belgian designer, who will turn 40 in 2023, already has a fine pedigree, having worked with Nicolas Ghesquière (Balenciaga), Raf Simons (Dior) and at Louis Vuitton’s women’s studio.
A new wind of freedom thus blows in the wardrobe of the label, bought in 2018 by Artemis, the investment company of the Pinault family. And its boutiques just as much. After the renovation of its historic flagship on Rue François 1er in Paris in 2020 and the space in the Marais on Rue Vieille du Temple in 2021, the brand, led by Adrian da Maia, former boss of Surface to Air and then Devialet, continued its ascent in 2022 via two new boutiques, designed by Belgian architect Bernard Dubois, starting in New York. The House opened its new minimalist space last September, in the Soho neighborhood, brilliantly building on its futuristic design heritage.
Eternal Monochrome
The opening at 104 Grand Street marks his return to the U.S. after nearly four decades of absence. Its very first foreign store, located for ten years on Madison Avenue, dates back to 1974.
Today, the iconic opaline ambiance returns to embellish the interiors, adorned with a circular display case, curved chairs, and geometric details, contrasting with the muted atmosphere of the mirrored fitting rooms. Like the other stores, the mirrored ceilings, dotted with spotlights, evoke the clubbing world dear to Nicolas Di Felice. The same play of lines and reflections can be found in the one located on the Left Bank at the Carrefour de la Croix-Rouge, in the 6th arrondissement of Paris. But this time the entrance allows us to discover a spiral staircase. Upstairs, the space is designed as an intimate lounge, with a round seat in front of the mirrored fitting rooms.
The architect Bernard Dubois and the designer Nicolas Di Felice, through the new collections and flagship reissues, draw accurately on the DNA of the brand, a symbol of the space age, while injecting modern conventions. A sober and brilliant assembly and recomposition, which revives optimism and the spirit of freedom to continue innovating.
Courrèges New York Boutique
104 Grand Street 10013 NY – New York
Courrèges Rive Gauche store
1 Place Michel Debré, 75006 Paris
Nathalie Dassa