Upscale American fashion brand Coach has renovated three key Canadian flagships with a new look. Coach’s Toronto (131 Bloor Street West), Yorkdale Shopping Centre and Vancouver (755 Burrard Street) locations recently saw overhauls, featuring modern interiors by a world-renowned design firm.
The new store design was developed by Coach Executive Creative Director Stuart Vevers, in partnership with creative firm Studio Sofield, led by Designer and President William Sofield. Interiors feature contrasting textures, and luxe materials, mirroring the company’s redesigned Beverly Hills Rodeo Drive flagship, which opened in late 2014.
Interiors consist of iron spot brick pavers, reclaimed heart-pine wood flooring with custom hand-tufted wool carpeting. Powder rooms have Roman brick wall tile and granite flooring. Handbag walls incorporate seasonal artwork as backdrops, and cabinetry is fabricated from natural and ebonized ash, blackened steel, antique bronze and mahogany trim. Mid-century furniture features custom steel and leather counter stools, shoe benches in tufted leather with suede details, pearl lamb shearling upholstery on club chairs, and Pullman cloth fabric on sofas.
The three flagships carry Coach’s ready-to-wear collections — a first for its Canadian locations. Each flagship also features a wide assortment of Coach merchandise for women and men including bags, small leathergoods, footwear, watches, weekend and travel accessories, scarves and jewelry.
“As the Coach brand continues on the path of transformation, I wanted to create something different – different for Coach and unique in luxury,” said Coach Executive Creative Director Stuart Vevers. “I believe the new incarnation of the Coach stores that William Sofield and I created will trigger a powerful change in the perception of Coach; it is sophisticated and refined, yet playful and authentic”, he said.
The word flagship seems to have lost all meaning. If everything is a flagship, what’s the flagship of the flagship?
The word ‘flagship’ is certainly used more than before, and we were provided this store classification for Coach via a press release. Years ago we understood ‘flagship’ to mean one primary location in a chain, though retailers now appear to classify flagships as a ‘special’ unit, carrying most/all product lines and usually being larger than most other locations.
I think this redesign is rather boring. Doesn’t really say luxury shopping to me.