Bloomingdale's Hands Holiday Flagship to Ralph Lauren Takeover

By Rebecca Stone

Bloomingdale's will hand its 59th Street flagship to Ralph Lauren for the holidays, staging the brand's first large-scale facade installation on the store together with dedicated holiday windows and a main-floor pop-up opening Thursday and running through early January.

The deal, branded Bloomingdale's x Ralph Lauren, follows a record-breaking 2023 season driven by a Burberry takeover of the same Lexington Avenue store. Kevin Harter, vice president of integrated marketing at Bloomingdale's, said the retailer had to raise the bar deliberately. "Last year we had a record-breaking holiday season," he said. "We really had to create a campaign and reimagine the 59th Street flagship to exceed last year. Who better to do that with than someone that we've had a great partnership with for close to 60 years? That's Ralph Lauren."

Who pays for the takeover?

Asked whether Ralph Lauren contributes to the cost of the installation, Harter gave a terse answer: "It's a true partnership." He offered no split of the expenses, and no contract terms were disclosed. What is confirmed is scope: Ralph Lauren will dress the windows, light the facade on Lexington Avenue and operate The Ralph Lauren Holiday Shop, a pop-up near the luxury accessories area on the first floor.

The pop-up will carry Ralph Lauren Purple Label and Ralph Lauren Collection, plus an assortment of luxury gifts. Harter declined to detail the windows themselves but described the concept. "In typical Ralph Lauren fashion, they're really creating this immersive experience that really reflects the holiday season, as well as both of our brands," he said.

The "hero partnership" model is now a repeat play for the retailer. "This kind of hero partnership really worked for us last year, so Ralph Lauren was the perfect partner to go out to this year," Harter said.

What else fills the flagship?

The Ralph Lauren program anchors a season carrying the storewide theme "A Treasured Holiday" and roughly 20 activations in total. Chief executive officer Olivier Bron framed the scale in a statement. "This season, we're bringing that energy to life in bigger and more memorable ways than ever," Bron said, citing the windows, the Ralph Lauren partnership, immersive brand experiences and exclusive gifts.

The confirmed calendar:

• Ralph Lauren windows and facade: unveiled the evening of Nov. 20, with a live performance by singer-songwriter Sienna Spiro against the windows that night.
• The Ralph Lauren Holiday Shop: first floor, open Thursday through early January.
• Barbour shop: Nov. 20 to Jan. 10, with a café built with Tea & Sympathy serving winter warmers, holiday gifts and seasonal treats.
• Ugg at Forty Carrots: Nov. 20 through Jan. 3, including an exclusive holiday frozen yogurt flavor; a special shop installs within the next one to two weeks.
• Santaland: eighth floor, Nov. 21 to Dec. 24, with Santa photos, festive treats and select public and reserved-appointment dates.
• Further pop-ups: Burberry Cashmere Pop-Up; Hermès Festive Workshop for fragrance and beauty; Barberino's Italian Barbershop; Parfums de Marly Holiday Pop-Up; Christofle Mood Pop-Up; and Robert Coin x Studio 59, an Italian-inspired experience showcasing Coin's Venetian Princess collection with festive bites and cocktails including The Signature Ruby and The Venetian Princess.

Exclusive merchandise rounds out the program. The assortment spans the Aqua x Dani Michelle holiday collaboration, a Bloomingdale's Advent Calendar, and tree and ornament partnerships with New York City Ballet, Caviar Kaspia and Alice + Olivia. Statement accessories made exclusively for the store include crystal-embellished slingbacks, clutches and designs from Christian Louboutin, Rene Caovilla and Valentino Garavani.

What does the charity program deliver?

Two cause programs run Nov. 1 through Dec. 31. Bloomingdale's will support No Kid Hungry through in-store round-up donations and online contributions, with select stores hosting cooking demonstrations by No Kid Hungry chefs and restaurant partners.

The retailer also continues its work with the Child Mind Institute. Five dollars from each limited-edition Little Brown Bear, sold at its regular price of $37, goes to the institute, alongside in-store and online donations. The partnership has raised more than $4 million since 2009, according to the company.

Harter summarized the density of the program in one line: "You can be there all day."

The measure of success will land in January, when Bloomingdale's tests whether a 60-year vendor relationship can outperform last year's Burberry record on the same square footage.