LVMH-Owned DFS Group Debuts Resort Galleria Concept In New Zealand

Luxury travel retailer DFS Group has opened its newest T Galleria store in the heart of Queenstown, New Zealand, marking the first of the LVMH-owned retailer’s designer stores to surface under the ‘Resort Galleria’ concept.

Rather than taking a more formal and rigid approach to high-end fashion typical of some downtown T Galleria stores like those in Hong Kong and Macau, the resort concept is deliberately designed to be “casually sophisticated” in keeping with the environs of Queenstown which is the adventure capital of New Zealand on the south island.

This first Resort Galleria, officially opened on Saturday, is almost 20,000 square feet in area and showcases assortments of international and local brands within an airy and informal two-level store within the newly refurbished O’Connells shopping and dining complex. Located at the entrance of Queenstown’s busiest pedestrian precinct, O’Connells also houses Eatspace, an artisan, locally-focused food and beverage offering and venue.

In a statement, Prashant Mahboobani, vice president of retail operations Oceania at DFS Group, said: “Queenstown heralds a number of firsts for DFS: our first store in this exciting location, the first luxury offering in Queenstown, the largest in the south island, and our first Resort Galleria concept. We cannot wait to welcome visitors and local residents alike.”

The plan is to roll out the resort model selectively on a case by case basis into the global T Galleria portfolio of DFS which consists of 24 downtown stores on four continents. It is likely the retailer will fine tune the concept in Queenstown before the next opening.

The biggest concentration of luxury in Queenstown

The luxury offer spans over 120 international and premium New Zealand brands, close to 40 of which are exclusively available at the T Galleria (the T standing for traveler). Fashion labels present include Chloe, Stella McCartney and Kenzo; while the beauty offer consists of a typical international roll call from Dior, Estée Lauder, Lancôme and Tom Ford, to La Prairie, Clarins and Gucci. In the categories of watches, wine, food and gifts, brands include Cloudy Bay, Steens Honey, Bell & Ross, Bremont and Breitling.

DFS Group—which is privately held and majority owned by French luxury conglomerate, Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH), alongside DFS co-founder and shareholder Robert Miller—says that additional brands and concepts will be added to the store leading up to a grand opening event in March.

The opening weekend activity included local artist, Jessica Winchcombe, creating custom abstract artwork live in-store that customers were able to bid on—with all proceeds going to the not-for-profit Sustainable Queenstown.

DFS Group also announced a partnership with designer Karen Gee, best known for her made-to-measure garments. Customers visiting the store are able to book a session with the Australian designer to create their own bespoke pieces.

First established in Hong Kong in 1960, DFS Group has since developed a network of 55 duty free stores in 13 global airports, the latest in Chongqing, China, plus its 24 Galleria locations. T Gallerias are presence in the United States, across Asia, Europe, Oceania and the South Pacific.