Armani’s opulent new flagship

The number of high-profile store openings during New York’s just-concluded fashion week seemed to suggest that fashion labels are taking a recession-be-damned approach to retailing. While there may have been less revelry than usual this week and some commentators are full of doom and gloom, designers are clearly feeling confident in the future of their brands (at least in New York City), as Armani, Diesel, and Adidas’s just-launched clothing line SLVR all celebrated the openings of new Manhattan flagship stores.

The Armani store on Fifth Avenue at 56th Street brings all of Armani’s brands under one roof for the first time in a striking architectural environment reminiscent of the spiraling Guggenheim ramp thirty-odd blocks up the street. At the store opening on Tuesday night, everyone from Leonardo DiCaprio to Michael Bloomberg to Victoria Beckham was in attendance, not to mention Mr. Armani himself.

Two blocks down Fifth Avenue, Diesel opened its new Diesel Planet flagship store in Gucci’s old digs, building hype by throwing dinners inside the front window for passersby to gawk at; diners included downtown celebs (Richie Rich, Lady Bunny), artists (Hope Atherton), and sports stars (Justin Tuck). A team of 300 professionally distressed the interior, which houses more than 700 styles of denim and also gives independent-minded Diesel lovers the opportunity to customize their own jeans.

Diesel Planet

Finally, Adidas did its part, hosting a crowd of 800 revelers in Soho at the first stand-alone store for Adidas SLVR, an eco-conscious line of fashionable, versatile sportswear aimed at a slightly more upscale customer than Adidas Originals. Additional stores will follow this year in both the United States and overseas. The inaugural collection’s basic color palette of black, white, and gray is reflected in the modern, streamlined interior of the store.

Adidas SLVR

With all the worry over the state of the economy, it’s reassuring to see these retailers firmly planting one foot in front of the other. We still have to wear clothes, and the show must go on.

KEYWORDS: Adidas SLVR, Armani, clothing, Diesel, fashion, New York Fashion Week Fall/Winter 09/10, stores

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