Manufacture
MTF uncovers Chopard's discreet 'Red Carpet' boutique in London's Mayfair, a hidden gem dedicated to the brand's most exclusive L.U.C and Red Carpet collections. This article offers a rare glimpse into a specialized retail experience, emphasizing the strategic location and unique ambiance tailored for Chopard's discerning clientele.
Hidden away in London, away from the beaten track, is a secret Chopard boutique. Everyone knows of the flagship London boutique in New Bond Street. Some keen enthusiasts may be aware of a smaller boutique in Harrods of Knightsbridge but few are cognisant of the petite but perfectly formed 'Red Carpet' boutique in Mayfair.
Discretely located off the 'Promenade' of the Dorchester Hotel, is a little gem of a boutique, aptly decorated in rich red soft furnishings and woods with sombre lighting.
Although Chopard boutiques globally are engaged in a refurbishment program employing lighter colours and brighter lighting, this small boutique still has to be in keeping with its location in one of world's great hotels, owned by HRH The Sultan of Brunei.
If more than three guests and their retinue/bodyguards enter the small space, some of the staff have to move outside to make room. Discrete screens are placed at the entrance to shield the really shy or important clients from public view.
There is good reason for this as the limited space is entirely devoted to the Best-of-the-Best (BoTB) from Chopard: the L.U.C and Red Carpet Collections.
Location - Location - Location
When I visited the boutique, it was the Wimbledon Tennis Championship 2015 and therein lies the raison d'etre for the location. Despite the boutique's diminutive space, I suspect that the Dorchester Hotel provides ample 'traffic' of some of the world's elite collectors and aficionados of Finer Things in Life.
That is the circle and cycle of Chopard clients. They are busy people who work hard and play hard. There is a "Summer Season". If it is the last weekend in March, it must be the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race; June is for horse power at 'Le Mans' and 'Ascot' and July is the Henley Regatta. It all used to end nicely for 15 years at the annual White Tie and Tiara Charity Ball hosted by Sir Elton John but that stopped in 2014; so we've taken to watching the cricket instead 
L.U.C Display
Red Carpet Collection
First launched in 2007, the Red Carpet range, named after the red carpet at Cannes Film Festival, consists of unique, exceptional jewellery pieces featuring rare and spectacular gems. "The Red Carpet collection arose from the idea of offering very different models. Nothing was imposed and nothing was forbidden, which meant we enjoyed complete freedom." - Chopard Co-President Caroline Scheufele.
It has recently included a Green Carpet capsule collection with a view towards sustainable luxury. In keeping with the demands of the GCC® (Green Carpet Challenge) label, this collection is designed and produced according to the highest standards of sustainable development.
For 2015, Marion Cotillard and Livia Firth have been helping Caroline Scheufele design those pieces.
Imperiale Collection
I hope you enjoyed this virtual tour of a boutique that few of us knew about to inspect the 'BoTB' haute de gamme watches and jewellery. The keen of eye will have noticed many Chopard Imperiale timepieces that we have not seen before were featured.
The Imperiale watches complement the jewellery and are themselves bejeweled wonders but they also contain top grade Chopard mechanical movements. That is the big difference from only a few years ago that the discerning lady connoisseur can now expect her timepiece to be as good on the inside as it looks on the outside.
I am glad that Chopard featured them prominently in my photographs, which, is another way of hinting that we will be coming back to the Imperiale Line in future reports.......
Chopard Boutique,
Dorchester Hotel,
53 Park Lane,
London, W1K 1QA
United Kingdom
Hours: Daily 11:00 - 20:00.
Regards,
MTF
I like finding unknown shops and be 'secret squirrel shopper'. You can learn a lot about the brand's training and culture by the answers that you get from frontline sales personnel. I found that Chopard front staff have improved over the last 7 years. Unfortunately, I can only be Secret Shopper once at each location. Now that our L.U.C 1963 Chrono PuristS Edition is out, I'm no longer secret due to the internal staff newsletter. ;) Regards, MTF
It's the inevitably that unless a "secret store" moves it's only going to become more popular... now there's an idea - a super secret pop-up shop ;) I agree with you in terms of the fun of testing service. I personally find car manufacturers the most serial offenders at poor customer service - Mercedes seem to believe that all men over 50 will buy a new Mercedes and all men under 30 won't . It's somewhat baffling and incredibly frustrating... good service should be a matter of course. I popped i
Secret Squirrel is already on the job. The cunning plan was to be in 'squirrely-disguise' so out with the red bushy tail and a plain mousey tail was substituted....we call it "incognito". mwahahaha Boom Boom! Messages are dropped off in secret writing in plain sight..... Regards, 'Tufty'
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