Words: Gentleman's Journal
If you like nothing more than hitting the road in style, then the first Rolls-Royce Boutique, recently opened in the United Arab Emirates, is for you.
The 7,300 square foot facility can be found in the middle of Dubai’s City Walk, fittingly situated alongside high-end fashion stores and opulent eateries. However, the grandiose surroundings wasn’t the only factor in deciding the boutique’s location; Dubai is an increasingly important lynchpin in the car company’s operation, being placed in the top five worldwide markets for Rolls-Royce over the past three years.
Described as an “experimental showroom”, the space mixes luxury shopping with a high end café. And, of course, no paltry cups of tea or greasy breakfasts will be seen here.
Instead, the boutique features virtual-reality configurators to help buyers conceive a vision for unique motors they wish to be made, an “Inspiration Studio” which showcases one-off cars crafted by Rolls-Royce’s Bespoke division, an area dedicated to displaying newly-launched vehicles, and the aforementioned Pinnacle Café where affluent shoppers can relax in between burning some serious cash.
As if that wasn’t enough, valet parking is to be provided all year round for guests and there is also an “Affinity Area” which will host a selection of rare, purchasable goods from other luxury lifestyle labels.
An eclectic retail experience which goes above and beyond in providing customer service, a spokesperson for Rolls-Royce said that the brand and its ventures are “much more akin to a haute couture house – listening to a customer base, understanding their lifestyle and how they like to interact with the houses that they are patrons of”.
The carmaker’s CEO Torsten Müller-Ötvös even believes that the boutique showroom will become a “social hotspot that perfectly encapsulates the spirit of Rolls-Royce”.
The permanent UAE showroom has been set up in light of the “Summer Studio”, a Rolls-Royce showcase that appears every summer in Sardinia and hosts both public and private events.
But don’t be upset if you can’t afford the ticket out there – the creators are hoping that this first ‘experimental showroom’ will be the first of many international bases. And, if the Dubai location proves profitable, it will hopefully lead to similar projects in other suitable countries around the world.
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