MILAN — Tiffany & Co. inaugurated its largest store in Europe here during Milan Design Week — which is also the flagship that displays the largest selection of exceptional archival pieces from the brand.
Located in the Neoclassical Palazzo Taverna built in 1835 on Via Montenapoleone, the striking store was designed by Peter Marino and opened after more than two-and-a-half years of works.
References to Milan stand in the first entrance hall, with CGI images on screens that project pictures of Leonardo Da Vinci’s vineyard in the storied Casa degli Atellani — reportedly acquired by LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton chief Bernard Arnault, and of the Via Palestro garden. Tiffany’s signature Birds on a Rock are superimposed, “flying around joyfully carrying precious jewels,” mused Anthony Ledru, president and chief executive officer of Tiffany & Co., of the fairytale scenes.
“A New Beginning”
Tiffany’s previous store in Via della Spiga has closed and Ledru suggested people “forget any other store we had in the past in Milano, because this is a real new departure. I don’t want to be negative about what we’ve done in the past, but I believe it’s a new beginning. It’s the first time we’re in Montenapoleone and we had a bit of luck finding the right location.”
Three LVMH brands now occupy Palazzo Taverna, as Tiffany is adjacent to the newly inaugurated Louis Vuitton and Bulgari flagships.
“The timing is right, it’s a city that’s growing really fast right now, we are seeing it with lots of tourism and locals, and we have the proper venue and the proper volume. That’s why we’re here,” Ledru said.
He underscored that, with Marino, “there are no guidelines, and that’s where you get the best. There’s discussions, there’s debate, but I believe it’s one of the stores where his creativity is reaching the maximum.”
Tiffany also plans to open a store in Milan’s luxury shopping arcade Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II by the end of the year, located between Loro Piana and Dior.
On Via Montenapoleone, the store’s façade features arched windows crafted by skilled Murano glassmaker Venini. Recreated from an original design by Gio Ponti, these lunettes feature an intricate shape reminiscent of the iconic stained-glass creations of Louis Comfort Tiffany.
The facade also includes window displays inspired by Michelangelo Pistoletto.
Ledru views the store as a “cultural hub,” underscoring Tiffany’s and Milan’s “longstanding connection to the art world. Here, you discover the archives, the craftsmanship through the jewelry and art. It’s a cultural destination where you can appreciate beautiful jewelry, but not just jewelry. Selling is a consequence.”
The store spans almost 13,000 square feet, but the size is “not what we care about,” contended Ledru, “because we believe we managed to create a succession of stories and rooms. Every single room has a focal point.”
These include a Michelangelo Pistoletto work titled “Color and Light”; a historical clock from the late 19th century previously in Grand Central Terminal in New York; a broderie reproducing every single piece of the Jean Schlumberger collection, such as the Trophée de Vaillance brooch, a gift to Diana Vreeland, or the Bird on the Rock brooch, and the Urs Fischer work reproducing all the signature creations by Tiffany, such as Elsa Peretti’s Open Heart design.
A skylight and a sculptural staircase with frosted steps designed by Hugh Dutton help amplify the proportions of the space.
In the patio by the bar, the “Stratified Venus of Arles” statue cloaked in silver and bronze by Daniel Arsham, who also conceived a similar artwork for Tiffany’s New York Landmark store, stands at the foot of the staircase leading to the first and second floors.
The only Tiffany store in Europe to carry and have a dedicated room for the home collection, it is striking with a Julian Schnabel painting dedicated to Italy and a table and chairs designed by the artist. In the same area are Gaetano Pesce and Gio Ponti chairs, and Bella Silva ceramics.
Peter Marino’s Take
“This 18th century building was so very Milanese – I loved it and created a Holly Golightly staircase in the courtyard as a totally lighthearted modern intervention,” said Marino.
Asked about how the artworks were chosen, he said he followed “the works of mirror reflecting the brilliance of sparkling diamonds (Michelangelo Pistoletto, Anish Kapoor, Stine Bidstrup); the color of the famous Tiffany blue box (YZ Kami, Johan Creten, André Dubreuil, Claudia Wieser); the totally glamorous factor of the brand (Warhol, Picasso, Vik Muniz), and total ‘in the moment’ of our lives (Urs Fischer, Sterling Ruby).”
As for the message Marino wants to convey to those who enter the flagship, he said “I’d like you to be inspired to buy a piece of jewelry and come out looking either like Audrey Hepburn or George Peppard!”
Archival Pieces
Ledru proudly touted the unique, sizable archival pieces in the Milan store, 40 items “from every single key moment” of Tiffany’s history, ranging from a dazzling brooch gifted by Richard Burton to Elizabeth Taylor, or the pocket watch given to the captain who rescued several Titanic passengers, and a watch from the World’s Fair in 1939, jewels from Liza Minnelli and Sophia Loren, and original glass lamps by Louis Comfort Tiffany.
“We want the archives to be part of the store and of the discovery,” Ledru said. “What this store allows us to do is really to go from storytelling to story living. It’s life. It’s a bit like a live concert versus watching TV. Visiting a store really connects you emotionally with the brand like no other channel.”
While leveraging almost two centuries of history, Ledru said that “unfortunately, or I would say fortunately, very few people and not enough people know about it. I’m not saying we’re going to keep exactly the same [archival pieces]. They may rotate after six months, nine months, 12 months, but we believe that it’s part of the strength and the depth of the brand. And we have one of the largest collection of archives globally. Who would know that we ever did this?” he said pointing to little gold makeup compacts, one shaped as the face of a feline.
The store responds to Tiffany’s “goal to dream and go through the past to understand the brand, the richness that very few people really know, or not enough people. That’s why we brought all these archival pieces, because I think it creates, automatically, legitimacy, connection to the past, and hopefully the understanding of why we do what we do today,” he continued.
Asked about the Italians’ perception of Tiffany, Ledru said they are familiar with the brand, its signature azure color, its diamonds and how it is “very strong in terms of gifting. I think they’re going to hopefully discover or rediscover Tiffany as one of the greatest jewelers of all times, because we have these 200 years of patrimony and history behind us, and the purpose is really to share the history like we never, ever did before. We’d be almost a permanent exhibition in Milan. Somehow, every artwork that we have has a link to Tiffany. It’s contextual, it’s not just a big museum with art. It’s a museum that even the artwork serves to tell the Tiffany story in a non-literal way.”
The store carries a wide range of Tiffany jewels, from engagement rings to the Knot, the T and Lock, to name a few, as well as high jewelry, watches and an array of diamond jewelry, and features rooms dedicated to Elsa Peretti and Paloma Picasso as well as two private salons for special clients and areas for customization and repair.
