For Serious Sneaker Lovers, Luxury in a High-tech, Virtual Showroom
Targeting sneakerheads eager for exclusive styles, Neiman Marcus has partnered with Hypebeast to launch a shoppable, virtual showroom featuring footwear from 11 designer brands.
The showroom launches today on Hypebeast, the men’s contemporary lifestyle website, providing shoppers with what Neiman’s officials describe as “an elevated e-commerce experience that reimagines remote shopping.”
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Alexander McQueen, Balenciaga, Balmain, Christian Louboutin, Dolce & Gabbana, Givenchy, Maison Margiela, Moncler, Off-White, Versace and Giuseppe Zanotti each designed an exclusive men’s style for the Neiman Marcus/Hypebeast initiative.
Once in the Hypebeast showroom, shoppers can click on the designer sneaker of their choice to link to neimanmarcus.com and purchase from there.
Additionally, 18 Neiman Marcus stores will sell all of the sneakers, though select styles will be available at all 37 Neiman’s locations. Among the 18 locations: NorthPark in Dallas; Atlanta; Bal Harbour, Fla.; Beverly Hills; Chicago; King of Prussia, Pa., and Paramus, N.J.
While quantities are limited, and different depending on the style, Neiman’s indicated that overall it’s “a fair size run” for a project like this. The sneaker prices range from $615 to $1,290.
To further the initiative, Neiman’s is rolling out content on its own social platforms and via email marketing, and content will live across Hypebeast’s platform and social media channels, including a homepage takeover and Instagram Stories teasing entry to the showroom.
“We are experiencing extraordinary growth in our luxury business overall with men’s as one of the standout categories and Neiman Marcus continues to focus on creating magic for its customers with one-of-a-kind experiences and products,” Lana Todorovich, president and chief merchandising officer of Neiman Marcus, said in a statement. “This opportunity is both innovative and exciting for Neiman Marcus and Hypebeast. It’s allowed us to reimagine what the future of e-commerce looks like while bringing the best of both worlds together and offering access to our top luxury brands who specifically created exclusive shoe styles for our customers.”
The digitally recreated sneaker showroom is a first for Neiman Marcus and Hypebeast, according to the companies. The showroom, a clean and minimal CGI (computer-generated imagery) environment, provides a high-tech experience with interactive navigation for views of the products at different angles, accentuating lighting and shoppable annotations highlighting design details.
“Online luxury retail continues to grow and our customers are seeking retail theater outside of traditional retail interactions,” Todorovich said. “As this space evolves, so does our larger strategy as a multichannel luxury retailer to provide the most unique and engaging experience in our physical, digital and remote selling environments.” She characterized Hypebeast as “a forward-thinking partner to explore the future of integrated luxury retail at Neiman Marcus.”
“Exclusivity, hype and sneakers are three words that make up the ‘hypebeast’ vocabulary, and this virtual showroom continues to push the boundaries on how our readers experience new and exclusive luxury products, specifically sneakers, digitally,” Huan Nguyen, Hypebeast’s U.S. vice president of brand partnerships, said in a statement. “In an era of fast-paced digital consumption, a traditional model of promoting has grown stagnant.” He said the Hypebeast team worked alongside Neiman Marcus to create a digital showroom that can highlight and showcase the sneakers in “a new, profound light.”
The sneaker showroom, considered part of Neiman’s fall “Re-Introduce Yourself” campaign, raises the possibility of future Neiman’s/Hypebeast collaborations in other categories, or another seasonal sneaker project together.
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