La Réserve at Printemps
La Réserve is a new 1500sqm space dedicated to outdoor and sportswear, located on the 4th floor of the Printemps de l'Homme (Men's building), answering the need for a functional fashion their identified well before confinement. The space is divided into 3 parts:
- L'Héritage (legacy): major casual and upper casual brands such as Barbour, Armor Lux, and Lacoste (belonging to MF Fashion, owner of Manor), some of them having granted exclusivity to Printemps
- L'Outdoor (expertise & performance): expert brands such as Woolrich, Patagonia or Aigle (also property of MF Fashion), and a bunch of exclusive and more confidential brands (NN07, Forêt …)
- La Chaussure (shoes & accessories): more than 35 specialist brands (running, hiking)
During lockdowns, social medias were filled with dreams of space and a return to nature. Now that the lockdown is over, with the perspective of either spending holidays in the French countryside or, for the most daring ones, buying a house outside the cities, it is expected that overall demand for outdoor experiences will increase even more, as well as the demand for technical yet trendy clothing and accessories.
This is the reason why, in this new section, Printemps opened the first department store boutique of the iconic French chain Au Vieux Campeur. Founded in 1941, well known among chic Parisians, it is famous for offering equipment for outdoor activities such as hiking, diving, camping, skiing with the appropriate dose of advice. Historically spread over several boutiques in the Latin Quarter, Parisians affectionately dub the stores The Village. With their dedicated 350sqm, they offer a lifestyle-oriented selection, including new categories they do not sell in their original boutiques, such as Denim, or exclusive items designed for Printemps. This completes their traditional assortment of very technical gear and accessories addressing expert and demanding customers.
Their strategy is to bring a new proposal to customers by relying on expertise and advice. However, this comes at the same time as brands such as Canada Goose who are upping the stakes in this expertise game, by allowing customers to literally experience in real conditions their products (as proposed in their Toronto store). It will be interesting to see how traffic converts into sales in this new Printemps space, and compare expertise with experience (for memory, the Canadian brand has also decided to limit shipments to departments stores to focus on its own stores).