Louis Vuitton is set to make its entrance into the food industry. On February 15th, the Maison will open its first restaurant inside the brand's new flagship store in Osaka. V Resturant, together with Cafè V, will be located on the fourth and top floor of the boutique designed by architect Jun Aoki and will offer a mix of Japanese and French cuisine by renowned chef Yosuke Suga. The space will also include a large terrace and a reserved area, Sugalabo V, a sort of subsidiary of the famous Tokyo restaurant (currently on the list of the Top 50 restaurants in the world) that will serve dinner only to a lucky few. Tokujin Yoshioka, the designer behind Louis Vuitton's Objets Nomades line of home and travel items, has created a charger plate inspired by the iconic LV logo to celebrate the project.
The new opening confirms the trend that
more and more luxury brands are entering the food industry.
Michael Burke, president and CEO of Vuitton, recently mentioned that restaurants and hotels could be the future of the fashion house. A statement reiterated by
Jean-Jacques Guiony, CFO of
LVMH, when he announced that the conglomerate had acquired
Belmond Ltd., a company with a portfolio of 46 luxury hotel, restaurant, train and river cruise properties in 24 countries.
According to Wwd and to Bain & Co's recent Altagamma Worldwide Luxury Market Monitor, spending on gourmet food and cuisine grew 6% in 2019 at constant exchange rates, surpassing personal luxury goods, which rose 4%. These results have certainly influenced the expansion plans of the giant led by
Bernard Arnault, who is increasingly interested in the world of hospitality. The group plans several openings in this sector.
Tiffany, the jewelry store which was recently acquired by LVHM for a sum of 14.7 billion euros, has a concept bar, the
Blue box café, inside its flagship store in New York and will soon have another one in Europe, from
Harrods to London; while in France the first Parisian branch of
Langosteria, a luxury seafood restaurant located in Milan, on the seventh floor of
La Samaritaine, is scheduled to open. Even the renovation project of
Dior's flagship boutique on Avenue Montaigne will include a restaurant.
