Dior fetes longstanding Cannes presence with flagship opening

Dior flagship boutique in Cannes, France

Christian Dior has opened a flagship in Southern France’s Cannes, just as the 69th International Cannes Film Festival kicks off May 11.

The new flagship at 7 Boulevard de la Croisette overlooks the entry to the Palais de Festival across the street, where celebrities and filmmakers will walk the red carpet later this evening. Dior has had a presence at Cannes since 1956 when actress Michele Morgan wore the brand’s gown on the festival’s red carpet, a first for the house.

Bigger, better
Prior to opening at 7 Boulevard de la Croisette, Dior operated a boutique at 38 Boulevard de la Croisette. The move provides Dior with much more space with its new address being three times the size of its store at N°38.

The new boutique’s women’s floor was designed by architect Peter Marino and reflects the “esprit” of Dior. The menswear area, found on the lower level, was created by Dior’s in-house design team.

Dior’s Cannes flagship carries the brand’s full range of women’s wear in addition to handbags, exotic skin leather goods, footwear, accessories and high- and costume jewelry. The new store also offers menswear, where the other location had not.

Dior’s women’s floor at Cannes 

In a statement given to WWD, Dior CEO Sidney Toledano said, “Dior Homme has seen a strong development in all markets. In our old boutique, which I remember opening more than 20 years ago, there was simply no room for it. But the times have changed.

“Husband and wife often come to shop together, and we cannot ask one or the other to run 50 meters down the road to another venue,” he said. “We would lose them and besides, it’s not convenient, though stylistically we do keep the collections apart.

Dior’s men’s floor at Cannes 

Musing on the rise of the unisex trend, Mr. Toledano continued, saying, “Some brands choose to merge the [men’s and women’s collections]. At Dior, the man is very manly and the woman remains feminine.”

Elsewhere in the luxury fashion sector the line between what is men’s and what is woman’s apparel is shifting.

For example, Italian apparel and accessories label Valentino went back to basics with a gender-neutral line of classic pieces. To introduce the collection, named Rockstud Untitled, Valentino creative directors Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli worked with artist Vanessa Beecroft on a living performance piece (see story).

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