anslates to imagination, creativity, or the power of the mind. “By coming together with our customers and partners (employees), this store is a testament to what we can achieve with boundless imagination,” said Menchu Lopez, store development head of Starbucks Philippines. The location also features wood carvings made by Filipino artisans, as part of the brand’s strategy to support local craftsmanship and connect with the community.  When visiting the store, customers can see a shadow play of a coffee botanical pattern cast by the canopy’s wood-carved screens, as well as a coffee plant carved into the wooden entry doors.  Love, Bonito launches largest flagship store, in Hong Kong  Omnichannel fashion retailer Love, Bonito has opened its largest flagship store in Hong Kong’s Causeway Bay, marking the brand’s third presence in the territory in less than a year.  The store covers a 6750sqft area inside the Windsor House retail centre, which is more than double the size of its regular location. The new flagship will include the most comprehensive range of garments from important lines, with dedicated zones for bestselling goods.  The store is built with modular racks to accommodate participatory community activities such as styling workshops and partnerships with partners such as Teen’s Key Hong Kong. Love, Bonito’s Windsor House site follows the brand’s recent global expansion with pop-up stores in the US and the Philippines. The Singaporean fashion brand, founded in 2010, operates 21 locations in Cambodia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia. Aesop launches new store in DFS Four Seasons Australian luxury cosmetics brand Aesop has launched its store in DFS Four Seasons, after joining L’Oreal under a deal worth US$2.525 billion earlier this year.  The store is inspired by the combination of eastern and western cultural strata that constitute Macau’s historic centre, which is an architectural ensemble that expresses the four and a half century long contact between Chinese and Portuguese civilisations. A massive stone basin serves as the store’s centrepiece, inviting customers to explore the brand’s full range of formulations for the skin, body, hair, and home.  The warm grey stone was sourced from Yunfu, China, and is similar to that seen on Macau’s streets. The store also features olive green cabinetry and amber bottles with alabaster labels as an abstract graphic element, as well as a space for unusual fragrances.  Boucheron launches giant Ginza flagship store Maison Boucheron has opened its second largest store in the world – in Tokyo’s Ginza shopping district – following on from the launch of the brand’s first in Paris, France.  ‘From Paris to Tokyo: a cutting-edge and creative journey’ is the brand’s slogan for the new location. The store spans four storeys and is created as a blend of French and Japanese culture. This shop is regarded as “a little bit of Paris in the heart of Japan’s metropolis,” said Helene Poulit-Duquesne, CEO of Boucheron. The architectural patterns of the Jardin d’Hiver are featured on the store facade. According to the brand, this facade is transparent throughout the day, revealing the four floors of the Ginza Boutique. By night, a larger-than-life forest is exhibited on the building’s face, changing by the hour and the four seasons. In collaboration with Random Studio, the maison has produced an interactive experience called “The Wishing Tree.” Every couple can write their wishes in this forest dedicated to marriage, which will be transformed into a sound and light animation by technology. Polene expands into Asia with first flagship store in Japan Parisian luxury leather goods retailer Polene has expanded its presence into Asia with the first flagship store opened in Japan’s Omotesando district.  The flagship, which was designed by French architect Valeriane Lazard, features two storeys and marks the brand’s third flagship location after Paris and New York. Polene Omotesando follows the signature interior design featured at the two other flagship stores, highlighting the brand’s ‘elegant and sophisticated’ feel.  The venue has mineral-colored external walls, a towering glass facade, a natural oak wood floor, and several leather lighting fittings. Makino Shikkogei, a group of Kyoto-based lacquer artists formed in 1929, developed a lacquered pedestal exclusively for the Omotesando store. The brand also partnered with glassmaker Emmanuel Barrois to create installations for the store’s interior.  Aside from leather items, the store is the brand’s only point of sale in Asia that offers its most recent jewellery collection.  Courreges launches its first Asian standalone store French luxury fashion house Courreges has launched its first Asian standalone brick-and-mortar location under a distribution agreement with South Korea’s fashion conglomerate Shinsegae International.  The location spans more than 70sqm on the third floor of Shinsegae gangnam branch, marking the brand’s fifth location in the world as well as the third market after Paris and New York.  The store design is inspired by the brand’s flagship store in Paris, featuring its signature white monochrome atmosphere.  The interior of the store is divided into two spaces: a serene minimalist design display area and a club-inspired fitting room with two buttons that can be switched between modes. While Club Mode uses lighting and electronic music to fill the room, Beauty Mode uses huge beauty LED rings to create a more private and intimate environment.  The Courreges Shinsegae Gangnam store is Asia’s sole site where customers may purchase the whole FW2023 collection. This story first appeared in the November 2023 issue of Inside Retail Asia magazine.