From Rei Kawakubo, the creative mind and owner behind fashion-label Commes des Garcons and London-based Dover Street Market, is a flagship fashion emporium that since opening in late-2010 has become China’s most impressive shopping destinations. Located at Sanlitun Village in Beijing’s Chaoyang District, I.T. Beijing Market is a massive 19,000-square-foot boutique department store that blends together Comme des Garçons lines with other designer selections into a series of fashion vignettes narrated along the various showrooms and levels of the 4-floor store. The location features all 15 Comme des Garcons lines as well as a select roster of international designer like Rick Owens, Maison Martin Margiela, Yves Saint Laurent and Ann Demeulemeester hand-selected by Kawakubo.
Tips
I.T. Beijing Market is also home to a small café as well as small housewares boutique similar to that found in London’s Dover Street Market.
Last Word
From the outside, the massive glass structure looks like a mix of modern office park and edgy museum is easy to miss. Inside, however, its fashion pedigree is obvious through a maze of high fashion that unfolds. A mostly hipster Beijing clientele meticulously follows the fashion seasons and gobbling-up the hottest items, especially in smaller sizes, literally within days of release.
