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Ann Taylor lays out the welcome mat to a more refined, residential environment
By Anne DiNardo
After more than 50 years, the Ann Taylor organization is so confident in its brand status that it refers to an actual “Ann Taylor” when making design decisions for her.
Recently, they noticed that Ann was surrounding herself with some new, upscale acquaintances, ones with names like Dior, Armani, Valentino and Lacoste, who call Manhasset’s Miracle Mile and Chicago’s Magnificent Mile home. As with any successful career woman, the company began looking at her surroundings and wondering if her environment was out of touch with the woman she wanted to be.
They knew she had all the right pieces. They just needed a fresher, more modern appeal to give her a stronger visual identity. More like channeling an episode of “Designer’s Challenge,” as opposed to “Extreme Home Makeover.”
To take the brand to this next level, the retailer worked with designers from Callison (New York) to create a warmer and more enriched residential setting that would still allow Ann Taylor’s sophisticated and classic side to shine through.
“We didn’t change who Ann is; we just remodeled her house,” says Linda Lombardi, the fashion retailer’s vp, store planning and design. “She deserved something better, so we updated her furniture, gave her a new modern look.”
As with any good remodeling effort, the changes are fresh and comforting, not shocking and unsettling, to long-time customers who have expectations when visiting Ann’s abode. “They’re classic ideas that our customer is familiar with,” says Victor Johnson, senior manager, visual presentation. “We just breathed new life into them.”
No Place Like Home
The doors to the new Ann Taylor experience have recently been thrown open in two very different venues: the sprawling, upscale Americana Manhasset lifestyle center on New York’s suburban Long Island and the decidedly urban, vertical Water Tower Place on Chicago’s Michigan Avenue.
Despite the different venues, the new store elements fit comfortably into both. The only differences are the façades. While wide window bays flank either side of the doorway at each store, differing residential touches were used to accent the entrances based on the locale. So a circular pendant light hangs above the entryway at Water Tower Place, while outdoors in Manhasset, a sculpted planter and doors on either side of a stacked stone wall lead to the refreshed interior.
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