MadaLuxe Group, a leading distributor of luxury fashion, opens today its second MadaLuxe Vault store, at the Oceanside Outlets at San Clemente in California.
“It’s such a marvelous location. The outlet center looks right out onto the ocean,” said Sandy Sholl, cofounder and executive chairwoman of MadaLuxe Group.
The first MadaLuxe Vault store, a 3,000-square-foot space at the Citadel Outlets in Los Angeles, opened last year. The format is unique in retailing in that it blends luxury and off-price in a boutique setting.
“We have had so much success in the first store. We’re on time for this one and we are rolling out a third location this year,” said Sholl. The location will be revealed at a later date.
As a distributor of luxury goods to off-pricers and luxury timepieces from Ferragamo, Versace and Versus Versace to regular-priced retailers, the family-run MadaLuxe Group is “strategically picking locations that do not compete with our brand or retail partners,” Sholl said.
The company has been working with the Craig Realty Group, an outlet center developer and manager, on determining additional locations in the 3,000-square-foot-range, though MadaLuxe is not limited to working with Craig. Sholl said her company envisions opening 25 stores over time and is being very cautious about site selection.
“We continue to make strategic decisions to select locations that align with our retail and brand partners’ business efforts, and this location on the water promises to offer our luxury customer the personalized shopping experience and selection they desire,” added Adam Freede, chief executive officer of MadaLuxe Group and Sholl’s son.
The MadaLuxe Vault store sells 15 to 20 luxury brands in a 3,800-square-foot setting and is testing a 700-square-foot eyewear shop-in-shop concept. “It could evolve into a new separate retail rollout concept,” Sholl said. Eyewear labels at the shop include Gucci and Saint Laurent. The address is 101 West Avenida Vista Hermosa, Suite 424, in the Outlets at San Clemente.
The MadaLuxe Group, founded in 2010 and based in Seal Beach, Calif., partners with European luxury houses seeking a North American distribution strategy for excess inventory. “I really do see more and more consumers wanting a piece of luxury,” Sholl said. “It’s a very big growing business.”
The company is composed of multiple divisions, ranging from distribution of luxury goods to off-pricers and back-of-office services for brands to serving as the exclusive U.S. distributor for full-price timepieces by Ferragamo, Versace and Versus Versace. There is also its investment arm, which went in with Hilco Global, among other companies, to acquire the Haute Hippie label in 2015. The company also conducts e-commerce, as well as operates the retail stores, and in the spring opened a 9,000-square-foot New York headquarters and showroom at 1370 Broadway in Manhattan’s Garment District.