Montblanc
Montblanc recently released its Naruto collection, a beloved anime and manga series to mark the global cultural phenomenon's 20th anniversary.
Since it first appeared 20 years ago, the Japanese manga Naruto has captured the imagination of fans across the world with its colorful stories about the adventures of young ninja Naruto Uzumaki. With its roots firmly anchored in the culture of writing, Montblanc is celebrating the cultural influence of the anime series with the Montblanc x Naruto collection of writing instruments and accessories, leather goods and smart watches.
The leather goods assortment consists of a Sling Bag, Chest Bag and Mini Reporter to be worn crossbody, as well as a Tote and Pouch with Wrist Strap. Each piece features a Naruto and/or Jiraiya (an old hermit and mentor to the young hero) depiction against the black leather, with the reverse in bold orange leather decorated with the design elements that evoke brush strokes, ink drops and calligraphy-style symbols associated with the art of writing.
"Naruto is a cultural phenomenon that appeals across generations because it addresses life lessons in a dynamic, compelling and accessible way. One of those lessons is the value that comes from the transmission of knowledge, a theme that is closely connected to Montblanc's own heritage in handwriting, and its ongoing mission to inspire people to leave their mark on the world in a meaningful and purposeful way," said Nicolas Baretzki, Montblanc CEO.
Hermès
Hermès unveils a new store in Taikoo Li Qiantan mall, a dynamic meeting point of retail, culture and leisure in the city. This new location is the luxury brand's fourth store in Shanghai and 27th on the Chinese mainland, a testament to Hermès' confidence in the Chinese market.
The store showcases the brand's 16 métiers across two expansive and entirely bespoke floors, conceived by the Parisian architecture agency RDAI.
A double-fronted, two-story facade, bolstered by two curved picture windows, welcomes guests. The soft undulations in the building's exterior are mirrored inside, where rounded edges, archways and lines create a harmonious space and flowing atmosphere of lightness and openness. With the store's exterior made almost entirely of glass, daylight is filtered through a custom, 3D-printed curtain in a chevron design, the screen creates a sense of privacy and intimacy while providing acoustic insulation.
The interior – marked at the store's entrances by the iconic Hermès exlibris and the Grecques lights, designed for the brand in 1925 – is open-plan. Underfoot, terrazzo floors in the Faubourg pattern have been rendered in locally sourced stones in a subtle tribute to the city.
Among the artwork selected for the store, a newly commissioned piece by Wang Suoyuan, an artist born in Shanghai but based in France, hangs in the staircase between levels one and two. The painting titled "Étoiles (Magnolia Yulan)" features a bounding horse and Chinese zodiac animals and was created using blue color pigments from around the world.
Shanghai's most famous geographical feature – the Huangpu River – is also referenced in the soft gradients of dark orange and yellow of the second floor's bespoke carpets inspired by the literal translation of Huangpu, "the river of the yellow bank."
COS
Fashion brand COS known for its minimal style opens its new store at Century Link Mall in the Pudong New Area. The 335-square-meter space is a bright and inviting new destination for the city's fashionistas.
It is the brand's first boutique in China to adopt a new facade that features sustainable tiles, representing the harmonization of traditional and contemporary culture. Designed in cobalt blue, the porcelain facade is sustainably made and produced in China's ceramic capital Jingdezhen in Jiangxi Province, a take on traditional Chinese porcelain.
Its bricks are 100 percent sustainable, and part of the shelving in-store is reused and refurbished from previous stores, nodding to the brand's design ethos that has always put lasting style, quality and sustainability first.
