Dior transforms Saks into a ‘Carousel of Dreams’ for the festive season

French luxury fashion house Dior has transformed the 10-story façade of Saks’ New York flagship store on Fifth Avenue with a ‘Carousel of Dreams’ window display and theatrical light show, alongside in-store installations and a digital pop-up to celebrate the holiday season.

The immersive festive takeover features the “most extensive” holiday window display Saks has ever created in collaboration with a brand partner, as well as a light show experience that features 300,000 LED lights and a musical medley of songs that capture the same sense of organic beauty as the installation.

The Dior ‘Carousel of Dreams’ installation draws inspiration from the Dior cruise 2024 collection and other distinctive Dior symbols, with intricate botanical icons and flowers surrounding a magnificent celestial tableau punctuated with Dior House codes, such as the star, the clover and the signs of the Zodiac.

By day, the façade stands as an elaborate sculptural work of art, with detailed watercolour effects and three-dimensional metallic elements applied by master artisans from around the world. By night, the façade is illuminated by a light show experience inspired by the beauty of creation, nature and the magical moments of winter.

Saks annual holiday windows transformed by Dior

Alongside the dazzling façade, Saks holiday windows tell “an enchanting story of Monsieur Dior’s dream journey from Paris to Saks’ hometown of New York City,” featuring quintessential scenes and iconic landmarks from both cities, along with playful elements inspired by the Dior’s Carousel of Dreams at Saks theme.

Landmarks featured in the windows include the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe, the Jardins du Luxembourg and Dior’s historic flagship on Avenue Montaigne in Paris, as well as New York icons such as the Statue of Liberty, the Brooklyn Bridge, Rockefeller Center and the Saks Fifth Avenue New York flagship.

Highlights include window projections and animations showing Monsieur Dior arriving in New York zipping along the Hudson River in a boat shaped like a J'Adior slingback pump and gliding across the famous Rockefeller Center ice rink in a sled shaped like a Miss Dior perfume bottle. Another display features intricate miniature trunks showcasing special moments in Dior’s history, including the luxury house’s spring/summer 1972 presentation at Saks Fifth Avenue in New York and the Christian Dior exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1996.

Dior’s ‘Carousel of Dreams’ at Saks features in-store activations and digital pop-up

The takeover continues inside the store with a carousel installation on the main floor displaying one-of-a-kind Christian Dior haute couture dresses, while upstairs on the beauty floor, shoppers can discover a Christian Dior Parfums pop-up featuring Dior make-up, fragrance and skincare holiday offers and services only available at Saks Fifth Avenue New York until December 10. Peter Philips creative and image director of Dior Make-up has also created four holiday make-up looks exclusive for Saks Fifth Avenue.

Marc Metrick, chief executive of Saks, said in a statement: “We are thrilled to bring our iconic holiday initiative to life in partnership with Dior and introduce the first-ever World of Dior shopping experience on Saks.com.

“This exciting collaboration is a testament to the power of the Saks Fifth Avenue brand and the strength of our partnerships with the world’s leading luxury fashion houses. For decades we have presented our holiday windows and light show as our gift to New York City, and this year we are honoured to do so in partnership with Dior to further elevate the unique and inspiring experience we deliver to our customers. We look forward to welcoming our customers to the magical World of Dior across the Saks Fifth Avenue ecosystem this holiday season.”

Saks.com hosts Dior online pop-up

A key component of the partnership is the ‘World of Dior’ digital pop-up on Saks.com, which will run until January 5. It marks the first time that all categories of Dior merchandise are available online anywhere other than on Dior.com. The Dior pop-up features an assortment of Dior collections, including women’s and men’s ready-to-wear, shoes, leather goods, accessories, Dior Maison, Baby Dior and La Collection Privée Christian Dior.

Delphine Arnault, chairman and chief executive of Christian Dior Couture, added: “The traditional holiday celebration at Saks, inaugurated by its marvellous Light Show on the iconic Fifth Avenue, is one of the most keenly awaited, spectacular and enchanting in the world. I am particularly proud that Dior, our ‘kingdom of dreams’, the incarnation of excellence and elegance, is able to take part in the magnificent event this year, sublimating it with its exceptional savoir-faire and the virtuoso inventiveness of our teams.

“The unique alliance between Saks and Dior – initiated over 70 years ago by Monsieur Dior himself – has a highly symbolic value for our House, bringing together the unwavering history we share with the United States and our perpetually reinvented heritage. An ode to the magic of creation in all its forms.”

Saks and Dior have also added an extra dimension to their holiday partnership with an augmented reality (AR) social media experience. Instagram, Snapchat and Facebook users can launch an interactive AR filter to transform their content with design elements from Dior’s Carousel of Dreams at Saks until January 5.

Jennifer Lawrence attends Saks and Dior holiday event

The unveiling holiday event took place on November 20 and was attended by Academy Award-winning actress and Dior ambassador Jennifer Lawrence and featured a performance by the world-renowned Martha Graham Dance Company, with dancers dressed in costumes designed by Dior’s creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri.

Last year, Dior partnered with Harrods in London, transforming the luxury department store into a giant glittering gingerbread house. Dior took over 44 window displays and illuminated the façade of the Knightsbridge store with stars, roses and flowers, as well as offering a café and two exclusive pop-up shops.

Dior’s ‘Carousel of Dreams’ holiday experience at Saks will run until January 5.