Images by Jenni Avins

Working in fashion, the smoke-and-mirrors Vogue fantasy falls away pretty quickly, replaced by long hours, outsized personalities and the relentless pursuit of perfection. And actually, this creative cacophony is what keeps the industry engaging. Still, every once in a while we need the dream. Paris Fashion Week is a perfect example, but I’ve found a year-round solution: the new Hermès men’s store in New York.

Already, Madison Avenue, where it is located, is a world apart from the rest of the city, and entering the regal brownstone that houses the store, you truly forget where you are. This sensation was amplified at the opening just prior to New York Fashion Week, as statuesque waiters in crisp white shirts offered trays of macaroons and champagne. Notably, despite the numerous camera crews and over 150 guests speaking in at least ten languages, there was still an overarching serenity.

High ceilings, stately architecture and abundant daylight define the 2,400-square-foot RDAI-designed space that men’s ready-to-wear Artistic Director Véronique Nichanian describes as “…like a perfect walk-in closet.” Gleaming, if slippery, steps lead visitors up to four intimate floors, each dedicated to a moment in the prototypical man’s singular lifestyle. Street photographs by Saul Leiter—think Horst not Vice—line the stairwell. Part of a collection belonging to Pierre-Alexis Dumas, the brand’s Artistic Director, each perfectly captures the refined Hermès world.

Starting on the fourth floor, ample windows provide a prime view of the signature horseman that sits atop the Hermès flagship store across the street at 691 Madison. The top floor also holds the the made-to-measure and special orders department, a wonderland of vibrant crocodile leathers, tactile suit textiles, ties and endless wardrobe possibilities. It really is, as deemed by Nichanian, a “floor of dreams.”

For those who can’t wait the to 12-14 weeks that the ultimate bespoke item requires, the third floor offers ready-to-wear suits, jackets and pants. Here, the clothing is a combination of Jean Cocteau’s bohemian sophistication and Jacques Chirac’s bourgeois style, meaning: plaid blazers, stripes and money clips. On the second floor—which is dedicated to sportswear, knitwear, leather and watches—masculine espadrilles, linen pants, reworked motorcycle jackets and other clothing fit for the Côte d’Azur confirm that we all need tall and handsome European boyfriends. The ground floor brings the entire Hermès universe together, offering everything from embossed baseball gloves and cashmere to iPod cases and the brand’s unisex scents.

Perhaps nothing confirms the store’s success as much my photographer’s comment upon departure, which was, “I feel like I just spent a moment in Paris.”

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