British department store Selfridges is unveiling a men’s footwear retail space within its flagship store in London’s Oxford Street on 6 November 2012. Featuring over 250 brands across 10,000 square feet, the new space will double the current size of the store’s men’s footwear area, and will also make it the largest men’s shoe department in the world. At any one time, the space will stock 72,000 pairs of shoes and carry 3,200 styles, from customised sneakers to bespoke brogues, and with prices ranging between £25 for Havaianas flip-flops to over £10,000 for made-to-order Tom Ford boots.
The department will provide an opportunity for Selfridges to stock new men’s footwear brands, namely Kenzo, McQ, Visvim, Junya Watanabe, Opening Ceremony, Yuketen, Oliver Spencer, Damir Doma, Ann Demeuleemester, Giorgio Armani, Burberry, and Barbour. Exclusive styles will be available from brands including Lanvin, Versace, Dr. Martens, Marni, Kenzo, Burberry, Trickers, H by Hudson, Tods and McQ and, for the first time, Christian Louboutin’s men’s collection will be housed in a dedicated in-store boutique scheduled to open in February 2013. In addition, the department will feature a new suite to house a luxury made-to-order footwear service (with interiors inspired by oriental living rooms) and a new salon dedicated to driving shoes (currently Selfridges’ best performing men’s shoe category) with interiors inspired by vintage Ferraris and featuring chrome detailing, leather seating and circular fixtures that evoke car wheels.
Designed by Belgian architect Vincent van Duysen, the space will feature wooden parquet floors, oak panels, natural stone cladding, and walls painted in a bone shade. Five of the store’s windows are being opened up in order to allow natural daylight and a leather carpet will be used in the central space to provide a sense of luxury.
