Ralph Lauren is opening a new luxury-themed retail concept in Miami’s Design District.
The store, which opens Tuesday, will offer an assortment of men’s Purple Label and women’s Collection apparel and accessories, along with one-of-a-kind handbags and accessories exclusive to the Design District location.
There are other luxury-only stores as well as units that focus primarily on high-end merchandise in the Ralph Lauren fleet, but the services and activations offered in the Miami unit are unique.
First up, the store’s design is inspired by the yachts and waterfront residences that populate the oceanfront community. The 4,135-square-foot store features teak wood plank and white tile flooring paired with blond mahogany wood millwork and stainless steel and black ebonized detailing. The space is filled with furniture from the Ralph Lauren Home Collection and decorated with modern artwork.
There are also interactive digital screens that allow customers to view any item available in North America, book interactive styling appointments, integrate their wish lists and more.
In addition, a mural was created on a wall on the exterior of the Miami Design District Museum Garage that features a reinterpretation of the women’s spring 2023 Collection campaign.
In addition to its focus on luxury merchandise, the store is offering a number of new consumer experiences. These include a collaboration with Poolsuite, a Web3 platform. In its first brand collaboration, the company codesigned a Ralph Lauren x Poolsuite NFT that will be gifted to all existing Poolsuite members. In addition, holders of the Poolsuite’s Grand Leisure collection will be able to update their “Leisurist” avatars with digital Ralph Lauren looks, using the vintage-vehicle-inspired “RL-3000” website.
Poolsuite members will also have access to a special immersive experience beginning April 26 at a waterfront private estate in North Miami with manicured gardens and a pool with views of Biscayne Bay and the Miami skyline.
Over the course of three days, guests will be transported to what the company describes as a “distinctly Ralph Lauren expression of coastal living,” complete with wicker lounge chairs accented with navy and white awning stripes, gold decorative accessories and blue-and-white products from the home collection.
In another first, the store will accept cryptocurrency as a form of payment. In partnership with BitPay, customers will be able to make purchases with multiple cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH) and Polygon (MATIC).
David Lauren, chief innovation officer of Ralph Lauren, said the company “has always been about building cinematic worlds and bringing dreams to life in extraordinary color. Our store experiences take on many expressions and our new location in the Miami Design District will be a true luxury statement in one of the most iconic and unique shopping destinations globally.”
He noted further that, “Immersive experiences are built into our brand’s DNA and we’ll be creating incredible event activations, innovative Web3 partnerships and one-of-a-kind product offerings authentic to the spirit of one of the hottest cities in the country.”
He said Miami was chosen for this concept because it is “one of the most Web3-friendly cities in the world, with a strong and vibrant community of start-ups, brands and luxury consumers participating in the space — making it the perfect market to test cryptocurrency and launch our partnership with a really unique digital community, Poolsuite. This store will be an opportunity for us as a brand to gather key insights as we continue to explore the space. We are in the early stages of our roadmap, but we see an exciting opportunity ahead across digital goods and virtual experiences to build upon our past touchpoints in the metaverse.”
Going forward, the company may open similar luxury-skewed stores in other cities across North America, Europe and Asia. Although he declined to provide specific cities or timing, Lauren said: “As part of our ambition to continue to be one of the world’s leading lifestyle brands, we’ll continue to show up where we know our consumer is shopping and create spaces and experiences in an elevated, relevant and signature Ralph Lauren way.”