Ganni expands into France with a first boutique in Paris
The Danish emerging premium brand is opening its first two stores in France this March, both located in Paris. The first one, considered its main address, is located in the lively Le Marais neighborhood at 118 rue Vieille-du-Temple and will open its doors on March 17. A few days later, on March 24, a second, smaller Ganni store will welcome its first visitors on Rue du 29 juillet in the chic Saint-Honoré district. Ditte and Nikolaj Reffstrup, Ganni’s creative director and co-founder respectively, take us inside the first cheerful and trendy store.
“We have been wanting to open a shop in Paris for several years now. The search took a long time and was disrupted by the pandemic, but then the context allowed us to find two relevant locations at once. It was better to have waited in the end," said Nikolaj.
Shades of lemon yellow, baby pink, and sky blue line the walls of the rue Vielle-du-Temple store (covering 130 square meters and two floors), welcoming customers into a bubbly atmosphere. Parquet and tile floors, origami chandeliers, and artworks on walls mimic a trendy apartment’s interior. "We want to create that special feeling of being at home here. The shop is inspired by our home in Copenhagen, where we love to entertain our friends," said Ditte. The charming and eclectic Marais district, with its restaurants, cool designer boutiques, and vintage shops does actually resemble the Danish capital a bit.
The label, created in 2000 by gallery owner Frans Truelsen and taken over in 2009 by the Reffstrup couple, offers a cool and feminine Scandinavian style enhanced by colorful and trendy patterns, reflected in its cheerful and cosy boutiques. Furniture made by Danish designers highlights the brand's roots, while recycled plastic catwalks provide a futuristic ambiance.
The Instagrammable interior proves how the brand knows how to excite its growing audience on social platforms. According to the creative director, the Ganni customer can range from "a young girl as well as an older woman who is used to buying luxury brands.”
In order to make the retail space unique, the brand turned to French talent. In the Marais store, artist Desire Moheb-Zandi created wall tapestries inspired by the clothing collection’s graphic codes, while in Saint-Honoré, Parisian artist Enfant Précoce painted a mural.
A number of events will be organized throughout the first days of the rue Vielle-du-Temple boutique’s opening to mark the occasion: fashion designer Pia Carolina will reinterpret Ganni jeans with her signature patchwork, while a 'sandwich bar' run by Paperboy Paris will feed the first customers. DJ Leonard Waldman will be on hand to provide a dynamic soundtrack. Finally, each customer will receive a mini-bouquet of flowers, and those who spend more than 300 euros will receive a leopard print tote bag filled with gifts. In order to establish a special relationship with consumers, the two stores will offer personal shopping sessions throughout the year, either remotely or in-store.
Two other boutiques in France to open in 2023
Ganni has already been present in Paris since 2020 with a corner at Printemps Haussmann, followed by shop-in-shops in 2021 and 2022 at Galeries Lafayette (Haussmann and Champs Elysées), Le Bon Marché and La Samaritaine. This wholesale approach has allowed the brand to better identify its most prized products in France before opening its own stores. “The Ganni boots, for example, are very popular,” mentioned the designer.
Ganni will continue to expand in France with the opening of two new stores already scheduled for 2023, although the city or location has yet to be announced. "Our strategy is not to open in one country after another, but rather to develop in clusters. This is what we intend to do in France," said Reffstrup, adding that in 2021, the brand saw its online sales jump by 50% in France and even expects a 90% explosion for the current year.
The company financially backed by the L Catterton fund since 2017 relies on a network of 37 branded stores and 600 multi-brand retailers worldwide. Since this acquisition, Ganni planned on increasing its sales from 45 to 100 million euros by 2020. It reported a very high increase in sales in 2021, of around +65%, despite the Covid-19 pandemic. Its sales level for the last financial year is therefore close to 165 million euros.
Its primary market remains the United States, ahead of Scandinavia and the United Kingdom. Across the Atlantic, Ganni plans to open new stores in Austin (US) and Toronto (Canada) this year. It will also take its first steps in China, opening a flagship store in Shanghai in the third quarter. Thanks to the expansion of its retail network and the constant growth of its community of "Ganni Girls", there is no doubt that the label will continue to show sustained growth in 2022.
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