| THE FASHION
TSUNAMI KNOWN AS TOPSHOP HIT LOWER BROADWAY LAST
WEEK
If you’re a fashionista and have been
tantalized by the mere word Topshop, then you
might want to check out their first US store
on lower Broadway in Manhattan. Known for their
cutting edge fashions at not so sharp prices,
this retailer has hit the deck running.
Their celebrity hook-ups (Kate Moss is one) and
hip nightclub atmosphere has everyone swooning.
I found myself banging on the glass door a few
weeks ago only to be ignored by the pre-opening
staff. But oh, the thought of seeing this British
import was a tease that had me wanting to climb
down the chimney to check it out. (But, no I did
not).
“It’s got an energetic atmosphere,” said
Barbara Hulanicki, a Topshop collaborator and the
founder of Biba. According to a New York Times
article Biba and Fiorucci share the same philosophy
of this frenetic style of retailing. We hear they
have as many as 300 new items brought into the
London store each week (priced between $45 and
$100).
When the store opened last week it was a mob scene
- “By mid-afternoon the line to get into
the store snaked north on Broadway, east on Broome
Street and back down Crosby.”
The 25,000 square-foot store has designer capsule
collections, a D.J. booth, 32 changing rooms, V.I.P.
suites, neon signs and a staff of stylists to assist
fashion-challenged consumers.
“All journalists want to talk about is the
recession, but somebody must be shopping, because
we’re doing a couple of billion dollars of
volume,” said Mr. Green, whose privately
held Arcadia Group reported operating profits of
$502 million for the year.
In their flagship London store over 250,000 people
pass through the doors each week, Mr. Green said.
Rumor has it that the Topshop brass had a cool
marketing plan before the store opened. “To
stir up crowds for the opening, Mr. Green dispatched
promoters around the city, offering Topshop totes
and gift cards redeemable for up to $500 to anyone
who looked vaguely cool.
The clothing is a mix of Paris runway styles,
vintage garb and street fashion. When Kate Moss’s
collection was shown in the London Topshop store
it sold out in an hour.
“I came in from L.A. just for this,” said
Yvette Hartnett, a freelance stylist, when the
doors in SoHo opened at 11 a.m. amid a flashbulb
barrage. Separating herself from the herd, Ms.
Harnett swiftly homed in on a rack of $85 sequined
dresses and T-shirts with a kind of “Hee
Haw” chic.”
“Topshop trades as much on clubhouse atmospherics
as design. They make no claim about providing wardrobe
basics. Its fashions are inherently and unabashedly
disposable (just like Forever 21 that I think is
the most terrific store on the planet if you’re
not an heiress or the wife of a banker).
Topshop is located at 478 Broadway.
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