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Kim Kardashian’s SKIMS Brand Takes Over NYC with Flagship Store on Fifth Avenue
It may be the end of 2024, but Kim Kardashian is still making major moves. The reality TV star and entrepreneur has ended the year on a high note with the opening of her SKIMS brand’s first flagship store in New York City. And it’s not just any location – the store is situated on the coveted Fifth Avenue, right next to the Cartier Fifth Avenue Mansion.
The 6,570 square feet store spans across four floors and was previously home to the Versace brand for two decades. It also features a showroom and VIP area, as well as an office space for the brand’s 175 employees. This marks SKIMS’ sixth and largest store yet, following the company’s impressive $4 billion USD valuation last year.
In an interview with WWD, SKIMS co-founder Kim Kardashian and CEO Jens Grede discussed the brand’s expansion and recent success with their collaboration with The North Face, which sold out in just five minutes. They also talked about the brand’s evolution as an apparel brand, their plans for 2025, and the rumored IPO.
Kardashian shared her excitement for the NYC store, saying, “The store has this high gloss mixed with monochromatic colors and materials and different textures, and everything is embossed like our logos.” Grede also revealed that the recent The North Face collab was one of their highest waitlisted drops, showing the brand’s potential for new categories and price elasticity.
When it comes to marketing, Kardashian and her team are all about creating viral campaigns. She explained, “There is a whole marketing group chat that we have going on. We send ideas all day, all night, and that’s the fun part…always surprising the Internet culture with our campaigns.”
As for their brick-and-mortar strategy, Grede emphasized the importance of catering to customer preferences. He said, “80 percent of purchases are done in physical stores, and we have a business where 80 percent of our purchases are done online. So clearly, we want to do the business the way the customers want to do business.” He also mentioned their plans to expand into Europe and the Middle East to better serve their growing customer base.
And finally, addressing the rumors of an IPO, Grede clarified, “The only ones who have never spoken about our IPO is us. All I do is respond to people asking about it. We have never made a decision to go public…At some point, we deserve to be a public company and offer optionality to our long-term investors.” With their impressive growth and loyal customer base, it’s no surprise that SKIMS is on the path to becoming a major player in the fashion industry.
