A Personal Touch

Giorgio Armani’s personal involvement in the interior design of his third eponymous store in Singapore accentuates the boutique’s exclusive, intimate experience.

He is pushing 90 but Signor Giorgio Armani shows no sign of slowing down. Determined to keep his sprawling fashion empire out of the hands of French luxury conglomerates, the indefatigable Italian designer is on a roll.

He expanded his footprint in Singapore with new store openings, capping this year with the recent launch of his signature luxury main line Giorgio Armani in Takashimaya Shopping Centre. It encompasses women’s and men’s ready- to- wear and accessories collections, haute couture jewellery, Armani Privé fragrances, and even bespoke pieces from the exclusive Made- to- Measure and Made- to- Order services.

But what elevates the new boutique is his hand in the interior design. For the latest opening, he and his team of architects came up with the concept that expresses his inimitable, refined sense of elegance. From the facade to the interiors that include silk wall coverings, the four themed areas within the 185sqm space are decked in exquisite marblesque veining in various colourways. Tables, cast in resin with a fabric effect and coupled with platinum- coloured metal, complement each room’s colour scheme.

Signor Armani is no stranger to the world of interior architecture, having launched the first Armani/casa furniture collection in 2000 (there are some pieces in the new boutique). He went on to establish Armani/ Casa Interior Design Studio in 2004 to offer a host of interior design services under his direct supervision.

This year, the launch of the company’s Residences by Armani/casa project, the luxurious César Pelli- designed 60- storey oceanfront tower in Florida, concluded successfully when all 260 residences were sold. “I always design interiors that I would like to live in myself,” the prolific tastemaker once remarked. When you step into the Takashimaya boutique then, you enter the house of Armani in more ways than one.

# 02-10/10A/12E, Takashimaya Shopping Centre, Ngee Ann City