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VIDEO: Ralph Lauren 4D: Fashion Meets Art & Technology

Filed under: Apparel, Video, Architecture & Design, Luxury Shopping

On November 10 Ralph Lauren used advanced video mapping technology projected onto the façade of the designer's flagships in New York and London to create an enormous "four dimensional" display celebrating the 10th anniversary of RalphLauren.com. The groundbreaking Ralph Lauren 4D extravaganza, which mesmerized thousands of onlookers, combined technology, art, fashion, music and fragrance into a truly innovative experience, and also celebrated the launch of Ralph Lauren e-commerce in the UK. Fifteen vignettes unfolded into a seven minute visual journey through the world of Ralph Lauren.

Viewers experienced a montage of flashing larger-than-life sized images including four-story tall models and polo players, and iconic Ralph Lauren fashion accessories such as the Ricky Bag, ties and belts that wrapped the length of the new women's flagship on Madison Avenue. The projection gave the illusion that images were extending beyond the building and floating out into space toward the audience. Music, illusions of blowing breezes, and even light mists of the new Big Pony Collection Fragrances were infused into the night's air creating a truly extra-sensory adventure.

Tags: e-commerce, fashion, London, luxury boutiques, Madison Avenue, New York, polo, Ralph Lauren, stores-and-shopping, technology, website

CONFRÉRIE HORLOGÈRE Watches Website Finally Active

by Ariel Adams (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches

After teasing me for months with a simple placeholder movie on their website, the CONFRÉRIE HORLOGÈRE website is finally ready for action. The Confrerie Horlogere is new watch making arm of BNB Concept, one of Switzerland's best complex watch movement makers. One of their first watches was sold as a one-off piece for the sum of 280,000 euros. The brand combines the talent of enthusiastic young watch makers with the engineering prowess of a movement making powerhouse. One of the best things about the watches is that many of them carry lifetime warranties.

The new website is just as interesting and daring as some of the timepieces. Like a skeletonized watch, the website is also skeletonized. In website design, a navigational map or tree is often made to explain how the site will work, and how pages are connected to one another. In a unique move, the Confrerie Horlogere made the finished site to look like this. You literally navigate around the tree as new areas pop up. I've personally never seen anything like it before, and I like the concept. It isn't perfect, but it is a novel way of checking out the website of an interesting brand. They could use the addition of a more traditional navigation bar in addition to the system they have, and of course they need to flesh the site out with more content. Overall I think you'll be impressed with the courage and dedication the brand has with not only their watches, but with their media presentation as well.

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.

Tags: bnb concept, BnbConcept, confrerie horlogere, ConfrerieHorlogere, site, timepiece, watch, watches, website

Checking Out The Wings of Hermes

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Luxury retailer Hermes has launched their new online magazine. Les Ailes d'Hermes (the Wings of Hermes) is a new interactive experience that showcases the product range in a bunch of different ways. I played around with it recently and while some of the windows are intriguing (looking at coral-emblazoned accessories set in water through a porthole like window is a charming touch) the site is not for those with short attention spans. If you know what you are looking for and want to see it quickly this is probably not the part of Hermes you are looking for. But if you are in a browsing mood and interested in seeing some of the more unique products in the line this is a fun place to explore. Click on a ripe apple and you are led to a bright green bag, the perfect shape to hold one apple, with a paring knife set into the strap.

Other sections of the site are illustrated with classic drawings and invite you to explore iconic objects in the Hermes history. It's an attractive site but the quality of the photography and illustrations leads to some slow loading time and the menu isn't exactly intuitive. The site manages to be both modern and old-fashioned at the same time, which is sort of the essence of Hermes, a brand that has fought very hard to maintain their traditional past and still appeal to today's customer.

[via Vogue UK]

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Tags: hermes, luxury, website

Belvedere Launches Online Drink Buying Program

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

Belvedere Vodka has been trying to go for the cutting edge lately. First there was the racy ad campaign with art photographer Terry Richardson, shown at left, now the company is launching a new branded gift card program with BuyYourFriendADrink.com. This is the first time that a spirits brand has offered a branded gift card for on-premise purchase through the company. The way it works is that you visit the BuyYourFriendABelvedere.com website and purchase a gift card for any dollar amount. The recipient can redeem the gift card or a Belvedere drink at participating bars and restaurants. Of course it does require knowing the email of the person you want to give the drink to so it's not so great for sending a drink to that hot stranger across the room.

[via Wine & Spirits Daily]

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Tags: bar, belvedere, cocktails, drinks, vodka, website

Area-Daily, Daily Inspiration For Those With Wanderlust

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

The latest find for upscale travelers, dedicated to making their time off really count is Area-Daily.com. The site offers a daily email with tips on where to stay, what to eat and where to shop in farflung locales. The emails also contain video reports from Area-Daily's on-the-spot travel gurus letting you peek at the places you are longing to go. Recent coverage has included a safari in Kenya; a wine-tasting festival in Park City, Utah; and a cheese school in San Francisco. Daily inspiration to keep working toward your vacation when you are trapped at your desk.

[via The Netscape Blog]

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Tags: boutique hotels, travel, vacation, website

A New Guide To The Fractional Life

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Services, Luxury Cars & Autos, Wings

I've been watching the fraction boom for a long time. Timeshare used to have a negative connotation but these days fractional ownership is a great way to get access to vacation homes, cars, yachts and jets that you could not afford on your own. A new website, Fractional Life aggregates a variety of fractional offers and experiences in various categories. Unlike one of my faves, the Helium Report, the new site doesn't evaluate or provide commentary but it does get all those fractional companies in one place so you can can see all the potentials in one place and make your own decisions.

[via PSFK]

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Tags: fractional, services, timeshare, website

Mr & Mrs Smith

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

Mr & Mrs Smith is a site that is dedicated to finding romantic getaways for you and your significant other, with extensive guides and reviews to finding the perfect luxurious boutique hotel. They focus primarily on Europe, but offer some selections in New York, the Northern Atlantic and around the Mediterranean, as well, and continue to expand their scope. Their panel of reviewers includes trusted anonymous sources as well as some famous names, like Stella McCartney and Anna Richardson, and every piece is written with a bit of humor and in a voice that you could easily hear checking into a hotel as the anonymous "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" with their lover. There are also books available, for Europe and UK/Ireland, if you want to take the guide along as you travel.