BCBG Bows Max Azria Boutique
Miu Miu closed its doors on Los Angeles’ Melrose Avenue last month, but designer excitement on the street should remain.
BCBG debuted its first Max Azria store Aug. 16, at 8026 Melrose Ave., across the street from the former Miu Miu store. The 2,700-square-foot boutique is the first home to the Max Azria collection that bowed at New York Fashion Week in February.
The Los Angeles–based fashion company plans to build four more Max Azria boutiques by year’s end.
Company founder Max Azria said Melrose Avenue was a good place to start. “Melrose is a very cool and happening street,” he said. “Since Max Azria is all about unique items in limited quantities, it seemed like a logical fit. The visionary customer we are catering to is more likely to shop on Melrose.”
Other Max Azria stores will include a 2,034-square-foot site in the Fashion Island shopping center in Newport Beach, Calif.; an 875-square-foot boutique in New York’s SoHo neighborhood; a 1,200-square-foot store in Palm Beach, Fla.; and a 565-square-foot store on 49 Avenue Victor Hugo in Paris.
The company has opened Max Azria boutiques in 10 BCBG flagships across the United States. Price points for the European-style collection range from $300 to $2,000.
The look of the Melrose Avenue store represents an interesting mix of the simplicity of nature and the glitz of celebrity. Entering it, consumers are greeted by one of three tree sculptures that dot the boutique. A room on the east side features a wall-sized photo of paparazzi holding cameras. Mannequins wearing the Max Azria collection stand in front of the wall as if part of an audience of fans.
The store also sells art books by publisher Taschen and handbags. —Andrew Asch
