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Supermodels Eva Herzigova and Lily Cole sporting their Ray-Ban sunglasses at the London flagship |
INTERNATIONAL. Sunglass Hut, the leading global sunglass retailer owned by Luxottica Group, celebrated the opening of its London and New York flagship stores last week with a star-studded roster of celebrity guests.
Two flagships opened concurrently, in New York and London. The Moodie Report was on hand at the London opening on 29 April in Oxford Street, one of London’s top shopping destinations. The openings form part of Sunglass Hut’s strategy to grow its retail presence globally in domestic and travel retail markets.
The new flagship store concept aims to provide a fun, innovative experience that celebrates fashion and shopping, Sunglass Hut said.
Interactive shopping experience
The 1,906sq ft Oxford Street flagship features a 975sq ft sales floor with display walls and freestanding units to showcase the latest collections from the leading designer brands, as well as a SocialSun station for an interactive experience. In addition, there is a VIP lounge for private fittings and press appointments.
Sunglass Hut CEO Fabio d’Angelantonio, who was present at the London opening celebrations having jetted in from the New York party, said: “People are familiar with Sunglass Hut, but the New York and London flagships provide an opportunity to make the brand a consumer destination that showcases sunglasses like no other retailer in the world.
“Sunglasses are starting to have their place in fashion, shown recently down major runway collections in New York, London, Paris and Milan. The consumer is bored with bags and shoes, and is looking for what’s new, what’s next,” he said.
Celebrations kick off in New York
The celebrations kicked off with the flagship store opening in New York on 28 April and followed the next day by the London event. These concurrent events in the two major gateway cities mark an unprecedented commitment to the eyewear category, according to Sunglass Hut.
The flagship locations feature over 30 designer brands in an expanded brand assortment, with a focus on Burberry, Bvlgari, Chanel, Dolce & Gabbana, Persol, Prada, Ralph Lauren, Tiffany & Co and Versace, plus newly launched brands such as Tory Burch and Stella McCartney.
Special editions found only in London’s Sunglass Hut outlet include Tom Ford and Badgley Mischka. Consumers will also find classic brands such as Ray-Ban and Oakley.
Sunglass Hut: Travel retail plans
The Moodie Report asked Luxottica Group Travel Retail Director Francis Gros about the plans for Sunglass Hut in the travel retail arena:
What’s the plan if Sunglass Hut is opening in an airport where a travel retailer already carries a wide sunglasses selection? Will you keep all the points of sale, even if there is some duplication?
Francis Gros: The strength of our partnerships with our travel retailer customers is very important to Luxottica. This is why we’re taking a very flexible approach to this business expansion, having invited our key partners to join us first on this journey. Working together, it will allow the Trinity of brand owner, retail operator and airport to working together in the truest sense.
We know that the sunglasses category has the capacity to deliver very strong performance in multiple locations of airports IDL without cannibalising sales. There is a role for both – as a department with the duty free store and as a stand-alone store – as much of the purchasing behaviour for sunglass is impulse. It’s a hot category that excites passengers. Put the product where the passengers are and they are naturally drawn to it and spend.
Sunglass Hut is a recognised global brand leader, which gives consumers confidence to shop. It also provides a differentiated offer, as the ultimate specialist destination for a premium sunglass shopping experience – total range authority in a stunning store environment, aided by exceptional customer service from the experts. Something that is very difficult to replicate in the main store.
What’s the timescale for the travel retail strategy? What’s the plan in terms of numbers of stores?
FG: Since we began this expansion, we have been delighted with the response from both our travel retail partners and the airports. The airports, in particular, are really recognising the retail income potential that Sunglass Hut can deliver for them – so it’s exciting times.
However, we’re not approaching this randomly. We have priority locations that we feel the Sunglass Hut concept would fit best, and this is where we’re focusing our efforts.
Number of stores in number of years? Luxottica is a publicly-listed company and those kinds of figures would be share-price sensitive. Currently we have over 2,000 Sunglass Hut stores worldwide, but there are only just over 50 in travel retail. That will change. Suffice to say, we are an ambitious group, we are serious about travel retail and the opportunity is huge!
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Left: Model Alice Dellal and DJ Emma Chitty; Right: Reality TV star Louis Spence and singer Pixie Lott | |
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Inside the London flagship: The Sunglass Hut SocialSun station is designed to offer an interactive shopping experience |
About Luxottica Group S.p.A.
Luxottica Group is a leader in premium fashion, luxury and sports eyewear, with over 6,200 optical and sun stores in North America, Asia Pacific including China, South Africa and Europe. Luxottica’s key house brands include Ray-Ban, Oakley, Vogue, Persol, Oliver Peoples, Arnette and REVO, while licensed brands include Bvlgari, Burberry, Chanel, Dolce & Gabbana, Donna Karan, Polo Ralph Lauren, Prada, Salvatore Ferragamo, Tiffany and Versace.
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Model Tolula Adeyemi talks to The Moodie Report, wearing a Sass and Bide dress and carrying a Mulberry satchel |
In addition to a global wholesale network covering 130 countries, the group manages leading retail brands such as LensCrafters and Pearle Vision in North America, OPSM and Laubman & Pank in Australasia, LensCrafters in Greater China and Sunglass Hut globally.
The group’s products are designed and manufactured in six Italy-based manufacturing plants, two wholly-owned plants in China and a sports sunglasses production facility in the US. In 2009, Luxottica Group posted consolidated net sales of €5.1 billion. Visit www.luxottica.com
About Sunglass Hut
Sunglass Hut is the largest speciality sunglasses retailer in the world with more than 2,000 retail locations. With a global reputation for premium brands, Sunglass Hut offers the latest designer brands. Sunglass Hut stores are located throughout the US, Canada, the Caribbean, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore, the Middle East and South Africa. Visit www.sunglasshut.com
Click on the arrow to view soundbites from Sunglass Hut CEO Fabio d’Angelantonio |
