You might be wondering what all the hype about Dover Street Market opening up at Dempsey is about, well you can now take a tour of the new store without putting up with the throngs of fashionistas trying to get a slice of the merchandise.
For the uninitiated, Dover Street Market is a multi-label boutique founded by designer Rei Kawakubo. Now if that name sounds familiar to you, it might be because Rei is also the founder of Japanese brand Commes des Garcon and was recently the theme of the 2017 Costume Institute exhibition and Met Gala held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York city.
What’s more, this Singapore outlet is only the fourth branch within the chain (the others are in London, New York and Tokyo) and like its predecessors the interiors are also conceived by Rei herself. Now do you see what the hype is about?
Kawakubo converted part of an army barracks in the hip Dempsey enclave into a spacious boutique within the COMO Dempsey complex. "I want to create a kind of market where various creators from various fields gather together and encounter each other in an ongoing atmosphere of beautiful chaos; the mixing up and coming together of different kindred souls who all share a strong personal vision," Rei commented of her design.
The various labels, such as Balenciaga, Thom Browne and The Row are located in their own sections, while the Comme des Garçons collections can be found inside two glass and steel enclosures.
Separate areas are created for menswear and ladieswear. The women can head to Wire Fence Labyrinth section, which is demarcated with steel mesh walls, while the men’s section is located in metallic structures.
The colourful structure at the heart of the boutique is similar to the ones created for each of the brand’s branches worldwide.
Shoppers can also find other brands, such as JW Anderson, Jacquemus, Molly Goddard, Vetements and Good Design Shop, along with Nike Lab.