Originally published in the West Australian on 28 June 2023.

French fashion house Christian Dior will open shop for the first time in WA next year in a sign of the State’s two-speed economy.

At 850sqm over two floors, it is believed it will become the biggest luxury retailer in Perth.

Opening in August next year, the shop will be spread across six shops in the Queens building, with a frontage of about 50m on Murray Street opposite its sister companies in the LVMH luxury stable, Tiffany and Louis Vuitton.

Lease Equity managing director Jim Tsagalis, who brokered the Dior lease, said the rise of luxury goods stores in the CBD, in both the number and the size of stores, signalled the biggest change in CBD retail in three decades.

“Not since Myer opened a full-line department store in the CBD has there been such a change in the retail landscape,” Mr Tsagalis said.

It is the latest in a suite of luxury brands seeking to cash in on Perth’s mining riches, which coincides with widespread financial pain after 12 interest rate rises. French jeweller Cartier and Italian fashion brand Fendi will soon move into the Fauldings buildings on Murray Street after a $5 million makeover.

Chanel is also a fairly recent addition to the CBD, setting up its first store in 2021.

Luxury retail spending in the City of Perth is up by 44 per cent for the first four months of this year, compared with the same period in 2022, which is more than double the growth in general retail spending department stores and supermarkets.

Globally, the luxury segment has grown by more than 35 per cent since before the onset of COVID-19.

It is not known how much Dior – whose brand ambassadors include Hollywood star Jennifer Lawrence, pictured – will spend on refurbishment, but the shop is set to offer a full suite of products, from fragrance to fashion and homewares.

Its Australian website shows a phone holder will set you back $1800, a black cotton singlet is priced at $1450, a printed cotton T-shirt fetches from $1700 to $2600, and a denim jacket goes for $4500.

A water bottle from its homewares range costs $350 and three miniature candles cost $600.

Prices for the more expensive online items are not divulged, with handbags costing up to $15,000 and watches up to $30,000.

Read the full article here – https://bit.ly/3rkpIpq