The Age of Elegance: Luxury retailer celebrates 100 years with a showcase of modern luxury.
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By Anne DiNardo
Neiman Marcus has been building a reputation as the ultimate specialty store since 1907, when Theodore Roosevelt was president, Oklahoma had just become the 46th state and gasoline cost 18 cents a gallon.
Over those 100 years, the retailer has solidified a space in retailing history as the place for unparalleled customer service, luxury product and innovative presentation. So while pausing to celebrate its centennial in September, Neiman Marcus already has its sights on the next century of luxury retailing with a new store in Natick, Mass., that embodies its definition of “modern luxury.”
“This store design is not trend-driven or of-the-moment,” says Ignaz Gorischek, Neiman’s vp, store development and visual planning. “It has a finesse and sensibility that will allow it to endure time beautifully.”
The 103,337-square-foot store is located 20 miles west of Boston at Natick Collection mall, which recently underwent a $500 million expansion. (Neiman’s operates another Boston store, at Copley Place.) The luxury-goods retailer partnered with Toronto-based design firm burdifilek to bring Neiman’s into a new era while respecting the attributes that are its heritage.
“Once you pass the threshold, this store speaks of quality and high fashion but in a comfortable setting,” says Diego Burdi, partner and co-founder at burdifilek.
While designers couldn’t alter the DNA of the Neiman Marcus experience – such as keeping the cosmetics department as an open floor, rather than breaking it up into separate shops; maintaining a specific ratio of designer and precious jewelry on display; and incorporating a generous amount of local artwork into the space – they were given some creative license with the aesthetics, including the store’s materials and finishes palette. And that effort makes a statement at the front door, where Neiman’s displays one of its most striking façades to date.
“The façade was spirited after a woman’s gown and the soft, sensuous flowing of the fabric,” says Gorischek. “It reflects light during the day. And in the evening, lit up, it’s just spectacular.”
The undulating stainless-steel structure, designed by Boston-based Elkus Manfredi Architects, stands 40 feet high and features layers of silver, nickel and champagne colors to create the illusion of a flowing dress. Beneath it, a ribbon of celadon channel glass and showcase windows are anchored in a native pink granite base.
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