Humble Vanity

This article was written by Danielle

Gap is pleased to announce its partnership with the celebrated Paris boutique, Merci, to create a special month long concept store adjacent to the New York City flagship Gap store located at 54th Street and 5th Avenue. Merci Gap will be open from September 10th to October 4th. This exciting collaboration marks the inaugural Merci boutique in the United States. Inspired by the original Parisian boutique, the Merci Gap concept store will offer a variety of products sourced from locations across the globe.

Merci’s mission, reflected at the Merci Gap location, is one combining fashion with philanthropy; vintage with contemporary design; and bespoke creations with the accessible. All profits from Merci Gap, after production costs are deducted, will go to various children’s charities and to provide work for impoverished youth in Madagascar as with the original store in Paris. Items in the store will be an eclectic combination of Merci’s signature products in addition to limited edition Gap specialties. With its offerings ranging from the very affordable to sophisticated investment pieces, Merci Gap is accessible to a broad consumer base with an eye for the unusual.

The store will feature several different areas of interest offering “must have” items, from categories including fashion/vintage, an Annick Goutal fragrance counter, a casual fashion section with Merci Gap products including limited edition items such as jeans, t-shirts and trenches, and the lifestyle/home section.

The products available at Merci Gap will include:

• Limited edition Gap t-shirts with Merci Gap graphics for men, women and children, including those bearing the Merci “manifesto” and also its mascot, the vintage, red Fiat that appears in an installation in the store’s Paris courtyard
• Gap “boyfriend” jeans with custom embroidery by Laurence Amelie and customized limited edition Gap trenches by French artist Soledad
• An eclectic array of clothing and accessories sourced by the vintage specialists at Merci
• Selection of Annick Goutal fragrances recreated from the most unique floral essences
• A range of Merci brand products including stationary and house wares
• A collection of beautiful vintage jewelry and ornaments made from hand crafted cut glass and mercury glass beads from Gablonz, rare pieces once produced in Eastern Europe

Says Marka Hansen, President, Gap North America, “I’m a great admirer of the Merci philosophy, combining style and simplicity with doing good and supporting the under-served communities, a principal that we embrace in the way we work at Gap, so I’m delighted to be able to offer a platform to introduce Merci to our customers in America.”

Marie-France Cohen and Bernard Cohen, Founders of Merci, “It’s truly the ‘American Dream’ for a French brand to be welcomed to 5th Avenue in this way. From the start, we’ve been encouraged by the enthusiasm of American visitors to our Paris store. For this project, we’ve carefully edited our ‘bests’, the pieces that bring the soul of our 15,000 sq ft in the heart of Paris to the very best fashion location in the world. Thanks to Gap, the original global fashion icon, for giving us this unique chance to accomplish our mission of giving and solidarity.”

The Merci Gap collaboration celebrates a unique retail concept showcasing handpicked items that illustrates that luxury can lie in the simple as well as in the sophisticated.