IN PICTURE: Harvey Nichols new menswear ‘destination’

Luxury department store group, Harvey Nichols, has unveiled its new menswear department located within its flagship store on Knightsbridge, London. Officially opening its doors today, the new area occupies two lower ground floors, which have been refurbished over the past 9 months and marks the first stage of Harvey Nichols 4 year development scheme for the entire store.

“We are incredibly excited to re-open our menswear space in our flagship store, where customers can expect an unrivalled experience in luxury retail,” said Stacey Cartwright, Group Chief Executive Officer, Harvey Nichols in a statement. “This is a milestone moment for our brand as it marks the first unveiling of our 4 year plan to refurbish our iconic Knightsbridge store. It’s a hugely exciting time for the menswear market and we couldn’t have picked a better time to create the ultimate shopping destination for menswear in London.”

Spanning over 28,000 square feet, the renewed menswear department is said to over 270 brands from around the globe, 50 of which have been hand-select, new for the launch and offer exclusive collection at Harvey Nichols. Rather than featuring the brands in a traditional shop-in-shop format, the section features what Harvey Nichols calls ‘a collection of specialised boutiques’ which offer art and fashion installations. New entrances, located on Sloane Street and the corner of Knightsbridge and Seville Street, make it easier for customers to access the new section, which has been divided by collections, such as Contemporary, International Designers and Denim.

The new department also offers customers exceptional service, through its team of style advisors, tailoring room and style concierge suite, which is linked to a large fitting room that can be expanded to accommodate customers and their friends or be used privately. Other dressing rooms features include mobile phone charging stations and “modest closets” in which sales assistants are able to bring in or remove clothing whilst the customer is charging without interrupting them. In addition, the new area has its own cafe and bar, which serves breakfast, lunch and coffee during the day and cocktails and light dishes in the evening.

“We want to take the grunge out of shopping — and leave all the fun bits. It’s about entertainment and indulgence — with added value and service. And we’ve been very thoughtful about how guys want to shop,” said Cartwright in an interview with WWD, adding the retailer sees itself more as a “large boutique rather than a department store.”