BEACHY STATE OF MIND: “White Lotus” may have moved on to Thailand, but Dior is going big in Italy for the rollout of its annual Dioriviera beach collection.
While the global activation will span locations from Bodrum to Bali, there will be several new locations in Italy, including a bar at the Hotel Cipriani in Venice overlooking the Grand Canal across from St. Mark’s Square.
Dubbed Il Bacaro Dior at Hotel Cipriani, the 35-seat outdoor venue will open on May 27 in tandem with a pop-up store inside the hotel featuring the women’s collections designed by artistic director Maria Grazia Chiuri.
The hotel belongs to Belmond, the hospitality division of French luxury conglomerate LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, which owns Dior.
The lifestyle push is not limited to LVMH-owned properties.
The brand is also teaming up with Gruppo Langosteria on a pop-up at Bagni Fiore near Portofino, one of Italy’s most exclusive beach clubs, located in the bay of Paraggi. Dior is returning there on May 15 with an expanded takeover of the space, this time including the beach, following an initial partnership in 2022.
In tandem with The Dior Bagni Fiore, it will christen a resort pop-up in Paraggi, to be followed on May 24 by the opening of a new boutique in Portofino, where its store has been transferred to a larger location on the main square known as La Piazzetta. The previous location, also on the square, will now be home to a Dior fragrance and beauty boutique.
In June, the brand will open Italy’s first permanent Dior spa at the renovated Splendido hotel in Portofino.
A look from the Dioriviera collection.
Kerry J Dean/Courtesy of Dior
In addition, resorts in Capri, Ibiza, Mykonos and in several Turkish destinations will be decked out in Dioriviera prints, with customized deckchairs, parasols and other accessories. Swimming pools will be equipped with inflatable animals, in tribute to the line’s signature Toile de Jouy Sauvage motif.
Some seaside locations will also offer excursions aboard Riviera boats featuring the Dior signature, complementing pop-ups including traveling Dior cafés or wellness workshops.
Chiuri has reinterpreted the Toile de Jouy Sauvage in turquoise and pink, and introduced a new jungle-inspired Toile de Jouy Palms motif in more muted shades like navy, beige and brown. Animals will feature in the Dior Cabinet d’Été jewelry line and a range of bag charms.
The Dioriviera range has gradually expanded to include homewares. New this year are ceramic palm trees made in collaboration with French ceramics house Jean Roger; vases by the Manufacture des Emaux de Longwy, the historic French masters of enamelware, and hand-painted candle jars.
As part of the activation, which bows in various destinations from late April to early July, storefronts and window displays in Dior boutiques from Beverly Hills to Shanghai will be taken over by life-sized woven rattan elephants, giraffes, tigers, cacti and palm trees.
A similar theme will unfurl in pop-up stores in Thailand, South Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia and China.
Dior began selling a beach collection at a pop-up store in Mykonos in 2018, joining the ranks of luxury brands courting customers in summer holiday destinations with in-season merchandise and convenient temporary locations.
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