Serapian plans to open its first major international flagship store in Japan, opting for the nation’s capital city, Tokyo, to bring the retail concept to life.
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Located in Tokyo’s Ginza district, the new Serapian Japan flagship will occupy a 250-square-metre, three-story former mansion, with an opening date slated for June.
The new lifestyle store will house the brand’s full range of collections, as well as additional client services, including customisation.
“We’re going to recreate a Milanese house in the centre of Tokyo, with not only our product range but also a workshop offering a made-to-measure service,” Serapian CEO Maxime Bohé told FashionNetwork.com during Milan Fashion Week.
“Japan has exhibited remarkable growth and remains our leading market, followed by Italy, the United States, and the Middle East. We already have three stores [in Japan], in Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya,” he added.
Founded in 1928 by Armenian Stefano Serapian and his wife Gina Flori, and later helmed by their son, Ardavast, in 1973, the Italian luxury leather goods brand was acquired by Swiss conglomerate Richemont in 2017.
Today, the company boasts eight boutiques in total, spanning Milan, Rome, New York, and Abu Dhabi, as well as in Japan, the Middle East and Italy. The brand is also stocked in high-end department stores and retailers, including Tiziana Fausti in Bergamo, Bergdorf Goodman and Neiman Marcus in the U.S., Braun Hamburg in Germany, and several prestigious locations in Japan like Isetan Shinjuku and Barneys Japan.
In its most recent trading update, parent company Richemont said quarterly sales were up 4 percent at actual exchange rates to EUR 5.6 billion (USD 6.11 billion). In Asia Pacific, sales growth for the three months ending December 31 rose 13 percent, driven by a 25 percent sales increase in mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau combined, “more than offsetting softer performance in several other Asian markets,” the firm said.