As if we didn't have enough to obsess about what with the holidays and all, our wish-list just expanded by about a bajillion. What does Santa have to sweat about? Well, shoe stalkers, the moment's finally arrived: Pierre Hardy has opened his first space in the US, and of course it's right here in the Big Apple. Parked on a quite corner of Jane Street, the boutique is as sleek and understated as Hardy's shoes and bags. "I wanted a space that would be a destination...something that was chic and intimate and special, not in the obvious location, not Marie Antoinette-y," Pierre told us during a private tour of the shop. A juxtaposition of the carriage house it once was and and a Wallpaper spread waiting to happen, the flagship is luxury on mute and startlingly sexual, with an outside area where, according to Hardy, customers can "sit, smoke, or have a coffee." And the wares, quel magnifique! For the first time, Hardy-philes can pick up the whole range all at once, with offerings arranged in three sections partitioned by gray, glass-smoked mirrors. Each area boasts different aspects of the collection: they're sneakers in his signature block print near totes and i-Pad cases, docksider type shoes ("they're very accessible," says Hardy) resting with flats, and, taking pride of place at the entrance, his to-kill-for vertiginous heels. To celebrate the Manhattan debut, Hardy crafted a sculptural woman's sandal, The Skyline Shoe, honoring NYC with mirrored-metal strips that channel our glittering skyline (and the reflective gold platform heel is just rad in its own right). "My store is perfect for my NYC woman. She will appreciate being apart from the circus and the crowd...she wants privacy—this location is slowed-down, chic, free." Truth: Did we mention we're there right now?
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