Polène’s First China Store Lands At Sanlitun Beijing

On Sunday, the Northern District of Sanlitun Beijing, a newly-renovated luxury mecca in the capital city of China, welcomed a new tenant — Polène, the French leather goods brand.

The brand’s first store in China, spread over two floors and 180 square meters of floor space, offers a harmonious blend of French architectural verve with Chinese visual elements.

The store comes two years after the brand launched on Tmall.

Upon entering the store, a tall magnolia tree made from leather greets visitors, establishing a serene presence amid the modern interiors.

While walnut wood grids set the tone for the space, the interior is covered in a compressed leather brick made from leftover leather from its Ubrique workshop. Made from a total of 12 tons of leather scraps, the brick preserves the material’s uniquely soft touch and conveys a rocky, organic sensibility.

A sense of discovery is further evoked by a three-chapter installation at one end of the first floor. Behind a set of walnut lattice doors is an interactive installation dubbed “Craftsmanship — The Art Theater.” A miniature dreamscape, the installation guides the viewer through scenes that highlight the DNA of the brand, including its Parisian sensibility, its Ubrique roots, and its craftsmanship-driven leather workshop.

In act one, “Paris, A City Sculpted In Leather,” the streets of Paris move to the gentle rhythm of the patacabra, a wooden tool used to set folds and seams on leather goods and that is personal to each craftsperson. In act two, “Ubrique, Beneath The Horizon Of Artisanship,” artisanal workshops are made from Chinese Xuan paper and surrounded by mountainous terrain, where Polène’s workshops are based. In act three, “The Workshop: The Grand Voyage Of Leather-Working,” mini handbags travel alongside elevated conveyors, growing bigger and bigger until they surpass the size of real bags.

The dialogue with local culture continues with a grand walnut staircase that highlights shifting light and shadow — silhouettes of iconic Polène styles are cast onto Xuan papers, a tribute to traditional architectural window design and Chinese shadow puppetry, a form of traditional theater that dates back 2,000 years.

On the second floor of the store is a seating area and displays of its jewelry collection and its latest styles, such as the merino wool editions of its Numéro Neuf and Cyme bags.

There are no exclusive products for the new store, but its Chinese New Year collection will first land in the flagship later this month.

For Polène cofounder and chief executive officer Antoine Mothay, having a Beijing address will help express the brand’s sense of culture and history.

“If you don’t just look at the business side — Shanghai is perhaps more modern and commercial — Beijing was a very clear choice, it allowed us to explain what we do and who we are,” said Mothay.

“We are not so used to being inside malls, but I would say Sanlitun Beijing creates a very good balance between European style and the Chinese way of shopping,” Mothay said of Sanlitun Beijing’s main attraction.

From setting up a Tmall store two years ago, Polène was able to gauge the interest of the market and set up a back-end system, including a local warehouse.

“We’ve learned that Chinese clients have a lot of expectations and knowledge about the product, they like to ask a lot of questions, it could be very technical, or it could be about the brand, about where we produce,” said Mothay. “It was also important to increase the speed of the delivery because they are used to a very fast shipping system.”

Mothay also noted consumer interest evenly spread out across various styles among a wider age group — from 18 to 45 years old in China, for its brand online.

“I’m very curious to see the clients in stores where we can build a direct connection with them — in China, around 25 percent are already returning customers,” said Mothay.

Despite competition from the likes of Songmont and other local aspirational luxury labels, Mothay said that what helps Polène stand out is how it can “give a lot of value to the client,” said Mothay.

“I can see there are new Chinese brands, I think they are very smart in terms of value perception, having their own history and showing the craft that you also have in your country — and craft is a very universal language,” said Mothay.

As for the near future, Polène is looking to open stores in Shanghai, Chengdu and Guangzhou. For the rest of Asia, a Singapore store is opening soon as well as new stores in South Korea and Japan.

For the opening event on Sunday, guests included Zhu Zhu — the Chinese actress and the brand’s latest global brand ambassador — Huang Hung, WWD columnist and businesswoman, as well as other influencers and members of the local press.