TURKEY. Unifree and joint venture partner Gebr Heinemann have opened a Gucci store in ‘The Bosphorus Zone’ shopping area at Istanbul Airport.
An eye-catching seven-metre high marble façade (pictured below) welcomes customers to the store, which features a sales area of 1,400sq ft.
The store offers women’s handbags, shoes, accessories, silks, belts and fashion jewellery along with men’s luggage, shoes, accessories, silks, belts and silver jewellery.
The store design is completed by yellow velvet walls, wooden black boiserie [panelling] and a parquet and handmade painted floor by Florentine artisans in geometric patterns.
Unifree and Gebr Heinemann said they were pleased to welcome the Kering Group-owned luxury fashion brands, which they said would add “creativity, innovation and Italian craftsmanship” to the Bosphorus retail area. The Gucci store follows recent Moncler and Hugo Boss store openings, among others.
“One of its kind, Gucci will bring colour and the magic of fashion with its most sought-after pieces to Luxury Hill in the Bosphorus Zone and we are very proud to welcome them,” said Unifree Chief Executive Officer Ali Şenher.
“Gucci achieved a huge success by redefining luxury for the 21st century, becoming one of the global references for fashion and accessories by blending undeniable quality of Italian craftmanship with eclectic and contemporary design.
“With the opening of Gucci, a benchmark for a modern, innovative business, in Istanbul Airport we continue to expand our successful collaboration with the Kering Group. As Unifree Duty Free, our steps towards creating an outstanding and differentiating customer experience for all luxury customers will continue.”
Gebr Heinemann Director Purchasing Fashion & Accessories Jan Richter added: “Over the past few months we’ve celebrated some exciting new store openings at Istanbul Airport, and the new Gucci boutique perfectly complements the range of luxury names.
“Gucci is one of the world’s best known and most influential trend and fashion brands in the luxury segment. The company is known for Italian craftsmanship, the utmost quality, a love of detail and imaginative and contemporary design.
“Creative director Alessandro Michele has reshaped the brand. With his vision, he has redefined luxury for the 21st century and created a very modern approach to fashion that is capturing the attention of travellers with a great affinity for luxury brands. We are therefore expecting to see very positive results for the store at Istanbul Airport.”
Going strong on Globuy
As a lead business partner of The Moodie Davitt Report, Gucci’s story will also appear in coming days in Chinese and with a consumer voice on fast-growing Chinese B2C WeChat social media account Globuy [玩转全球免税], as part of a new collaboration between Globuy owner Extra-Aile Media in Shanghai and The Moodie Davitt Report. Globuy aims to become “the KOL of Chinese travel retail” and already has 400,000 followers and a monthly audience of 1 million views for its WeChat social media platform promoting new launches, product availability, promotions and special offers. Underlining the strong affinity and complementary nature of the two companies’ work, Globuy has dubbed The Moodie Davitt Report “the KOL of travel retail B2B media” Under the agreement, selected stories from The Moodie Davitt Report.com’s lead brand partners in beauty, fashion, luxury, confectionery and premium spirits are also published by Globuy in Chinese. These include product reviews by the Globuy team. Globuy is promoting The Moodie Davitt Report’s platform to China’s travel retail sector and to its own consumer audience in China. The Moodie Davitt Report subsequently also publishes a curated selection of Chinese consumer feedback on the chosen stories and will reveal the results of regular consumer surveys conducted in association with Globuy. |
