dThe floors are slabs of natural Italian Basaltina stone, the display cases on the walls are a mix of glass and steel, with seating areas in between with heavy wooden tables, side tables with books and vintage white leather armchairs. A spiral staircase made of white arabescato marble surrounded by vertical mirrors and neon lights leads to the first floor, where ready-to-wear fashion and shoes can be found.
The 300 square meter store displays the brand’s entire portfolio. In addition to women’s ready-to-wear, these include: shoes, bags, perfumes, accessories and interior design. For the first time, the Celine world is spread over three floors instead of two. As of now, the menswear that launched with Slimane when he joined Celine in 2019 is now available exclusively at the Munich store. For this purpose, the basement was completely rebuilt with its historic brick vault, which previously served as a warehouse. Also here, as on the other two floors, there are always islands of tranquility with vintage pieces and furniture designed by the designer.
The concept was born according to the wishes of Hedi Slimane.
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Image: Celine/PR
According to a company spokesperson, Hedi Slimane’s goal is to combine brutalist influences with natural materials and thus create an attractive contrast. On every floor there are paintings by contemporary painters that are displayed in various Celine stores around the world and now also in Munich as part of the Celine Art Project.
The combination of fashion, art and furniture plays an important role in Hedi Slimane’s business concept because, in addition to his passion for music, the Frenchman is also known for his interest in architecture, art and interiors.
Renew the visual identity of the brand
The store’s design reflects its preference for clean lines and minimalist aesthetics. The redesign of the Celine stores is the last step to completely renew the brand’s visual identity, from the logo to the name, which it downplayed in one of its first actions.
This 55-year-old Frenchman with Italian-Tunisian roots leaves nothing to chance. He even personally decides what music can be played in stores. Hedi Slimane is considered uncompromising and confrontational, and someone who little liked the subtle and intellectual style of his predecessor Phoebe Philo. But with his simple, sometimes radical style, he has already rejuvenated the Saint Laurent and Dior brands and has especially impressed the millennial generation. He is considered the inventor of size zero, for whose slim Dior suits Karl Lagerfeld starved himself until he lost 40 kilograms.
Attractive contrasts: In the store, brutalist influences were combined with natural materials.
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Image: Celine/PR
Celine belongs to the world’s largest luxury group, LVMH, which, according to the industry magazine TextilWirtschaft, reached sales of almost 79 billion euros in 2022. According to the head of LVMH, Bernard Arnault, Celine has exceeded two billion of euros.