Inside Bottega Veneta's 15,000-Square-Foot Manhattan Maison
Tomas Maier craves authenticity. “Everything is so globalized, with so many stores that look alike in cities that have tons of personality,” says Bottega Veneta’s creative director. That realization has led him to develop retail spaces under the Maison rubric, flagships in which the materials, palettes, and details subtly honor their locations.
The latest Maison Bottega Veneta recently launched in Manhattan, following those in Milan and Beverly Hills, and it is the biggest: 15,000 seductive square feet of menswear, womenswear, accessories, and furniture spread over three 19th-century townhouses at 740 Madison Avenue. The exteriors have been restored to Age of Innocence perfection—Maier, a passionate architecture buff, is on World Monuments Fund’s advisory committee—grounding the store in the city’s streetscape narrative. Which, neatly enough, includes the brand itself. “Bottega Veneta opened its first American store on Madison Avenue in 1972,” Maier explains.
The interiors are Italian suave, but Manhattan references abound. Basaltina floors recall the asphalt thoroughfare outside. Bronze surfaces conjure up the sun glinting off skyscrapers. Metal-chain curtains evoke the window treatments at the legendary Four Seasons restaurant. On the top floor, the maids’ rooms have been punched out to create a grand vault that follows the original angled rooflines.
Home goods are displayed beneath that vault, joined by a rotating sale collection of modernist art from Robilant + Voena, one of Maier’s favorite galleries. “When you open the glass door, it’s a continuation of what’s outside but one with a lot of serenity and calm,” he observes. “It’s nice to come into a space that isn’t the opposite of where you just were but is still a different world.” bottegaveneta.com
