14th September 2012. McQ Alexander McQueen announces the opening of its first flagship store on London’s Dover Street. The store was conceived by Sarah Burton at Alexander McQueen and realised together with David Collins Studio.
“We wanted to create a story and a home for McQ and the flagship on Dover Street is an extension of this world. The store offers special catwalk pieces alongside ready-to-wear collections in a rich and immersive McQ environment.” – Sarah Burton.
“We looked at fetish. We wanted the home of McQ to be a parallel view of Alexander McQueen, where eroticism is part of the fabric and design that slowly unfolds throughout the store.” – David Collins.
THE STORE
Situated within a Georgian townhouse, the retail space is spread over three floors covering 3,000 square feet. The store will be home to the entire McQ collection, offering the full mens and womenswear collections as well as runway pieces, footwear and accessories.
The concept of the store draws inspiration from surrealism and boudoir contrasted with Brutalism. There are references to the handwriting of McQ throughout, from rich velvet to precious hand-crafted finishing as well as tough, utilitarian fixtures inspired by modernism and street culture.
The exterior of the store is decorated in pale grey complementing the soft colour palette reflective of skin tones within. At the core of the space is the central feature: a curved, concrete staircase imposing flow and direction throughout the building. Walls are treated in Japanned lacquer. Original steel columns with polished, stainless steel rivets are exposed.
Furnishing showcases McQueen’s take on supernature and carved anatomical details, contrasting with clean, hard metal lines. Shuttered concrete is juxtaposed with sumptuous flocked velvet and ivory shag pile carpeting. Fibreglass resin hanging rails reflect the McQueen obsession with the body.
Two interactive features are included in the store. On the ground floor visitors are greeted by an interactive digital table and billboard featuring brand content and imagery. Gesture-controlled mirrors on the first and lower ground floors allow customers to browse the collection and photograph themselves in looks which they can then share with friends via social media channels or email.
