Excellence, quality and elegance: three values typical of Made in Italy, which Valextra has been representing and exporting worldwide. Through its timeless, elegant creations, shown in boutiques designed by the world’s most respected talent, the brand made discreet and refined luxury its signature style, becoming a global ambassador for aesthetic research and creativity.
After Kengo Kuma’s redesign of the Milanese boutique, and the new flagship stores in London and Chengdu, Valextra picked Hong Kong as its next Asian destination. The project was entrusted to British designer Max Lamb, one of the most critically acclaimed designers worldwide.
Ever since the brand’s creation 80 years ago, the link between tradition and modernity has been one of the key elements of Valextra’s vision. To bring a sense of Italian architectural tradition to Hong Kong, Max Lamb decided to pay tribute to the company’s home country, with a new interpretation of a quintessentially Italian material such as the Venetian terrazzo, creating a bespoke pattern.
The material features on every corner of the boutique, from floors and walls to the large counter and shelves, all created with the reinterpreted terrazzo. It’s a material with a smooth, luminous surface, dotted with small stones in different shapes and colors, which transports visitors to a new dimension that is both material and immaterial, where Valextra’s collections appear suspended between time and space. It’s an optical total look, whose pragmatism brings to life Valextra’s vivid color palette. The Barrisol ceiling is equipped with invisible spotlights which illuminate the space giving it an unusual aura; below, the Valextra creations are displayed like small Made in Italy masterpieces, works of art created through the savoir faire and dedication to quality typical of the country.
The bright hues and the soft texture of the brand’s signature leather punctuate the external walls of the boutique, in playful contrast with the solid aesthetic of the surroundings. Just as the British designer’s characteristic mono-material approach to create innovative space arrangement is a signature element of his oeuvre, Valextra’s products perfectly embody the discreet elegance so typical of the Milanese.
The brand’s collections, shown like precious leather jewels, suitably embody Valextra’s mission to export its excellence beyond the Italian borders, constantly reinventing its offer while staying faithful to its values. Each Valextra boutique has a strong, unique identity, which exists within a system that is as eclectic as it is coherent, demonstrating the company’s constant wish to keep traditions alive while looking to the future.