Featuring First Café and Restaurant
Louis Vuitton is pleased to announce the opening of Louis Vuitton Maison Osaka Midosuji. The Osaka Midosuji store is the imaginative result of a close collaboration between architects Jun Aoki and Peter Marino, who both share a long-standing relationship with the French House. This new four-floor store reflects Osaka’s heritage as Japan’s most important port and highlights the city’s growing role as an international travel hub. In cooperation with celebrated chef Yosuke Suga, Le Café V, the very first Louis Vuitton café, sits atop Louis Vuitton Osaka Midosuji, guarding the secret entrance to Sugalabo V, Suga’s exclusive restaurant also housed within the Maison.
Architect Jun Aoki is known for his work on a number of landmark Louis Vuitton stores in Japan and around the world, including New York’s Fifth Avenue Maison. Drawing on Osaka’s history as a sea-faring city, Aoki imagined a light and airy white structure inspired by the traditional Higaki-Kaisen cargo ship and its billowing sails. The purity of the façade is reinforced by the use of metal fretwork motifs at ground level, creating the impression of a ship floating on water. In celebration of the grand opening of the House’s newest Maison, artist Kenta Cobayashi modeled liquid crystal distortions into a bespoke sculpture that ribbons across the store’s windows in swirling, lucid colors. Inside, architect Peter Marino has followed similar inspirations, fusing the maritime feel of the building with elements of Japanese traditional culture. Wooden floors give the impression of decks, with wood-clad pillars and metal ceilings reminiscent of the spirit of a grand yacht embarking on an exciting adventure. Traditional Japanese materials such as woodwork and origami washi paper features throughout the various spaces dedicated to a complete offering of Louis Vuitton’s collections, alongside nearly 20 contemporary artworks selected or commissioned by Marino.
Located on the top floor of this spectacular new building is Le Café V featuring a curated menu by chef Yosuke Suga. The café’s Cocoon Room, generous terrace and adjoining bar can be visited day to evening. Known for his Tokyo restaurant Sugalabo, ranked one of the best in the world, Yosuke Suga is passionate about showcasing local Japanese ingredients in his unique establishment, welcoming a select few diners per evening. A protégé of internationally celebrated French chef Joël Robuchon, Yosuke Suga opened his Tokyo restaurant in 2015 to create an intimate and exciting dining experience open only to those in the know: the booking process and entrance to this restaurant are a closely kept secret. Next to Le Café’ V’s cocktail bar sits a speakeasy-style door which allows access to the exclusive restaurant Sugalabo V, open to a small group of diners each evening. The restaurant features an open kitchen and architectural details evocative of the original venue, alongside nautical materials and details connecting the central theme of the building’s design. Louis Vuitton Objets Nomades designer Tokujin Yoshioka designed a Monogram-inspired charger plate, from which a variety of the restaurant’s crockery has been developed.
Location
2-8-16, Shinsaibashisuji, Chuo-ku, Osaka-Shi
542-0085 Osaka OSAKA – Japan
Telephone: 0120-41-6910