It must be interesting to be at an architecture firm working for Louis Vuitton. Somewhere on the first page of the client’s design brief, I assume there’s always a line reading something like, ‘Temporary construction: Any temporary structures must resemble Louis Vuitton trunk luggage.’

Parisians have been looking at a giant multi-story construction site-slash-Vuitton trunk on avenue des Champs-Élysées for years now, where Vuitton is building—well, no one knows quite what. Is it a hotel? A flagship store with suites for high spenders, à la casinos? A restaurant and spa? All the above? We’ll find out soon enough, as whatever it is, it’s rumored to open later this year.

Meanwhile, in 2024, Vuitton launched a renovation of their flagship store on 5th Avenue at East 57th Street in New York City.

Your guess is as good as mine as to when this will be complete. What to do in the meantime? Louis Vuitton already has three standalone stores in Manhattan, in Brookfield Place, Hudson Yards, and Soho, and then stores-within-stores at Bloomingdale’s and Saks. Surely those will tide them over? Mais non ! Ça ne va pas du tout !

Instead, while their flagship is under renovation, Vuitton has created a new temporary flagship store across the street, on the other side of 57th, next door to Tiffany & Co.’s flagship, The Landmark:

Louis Vuitton is over-the-top if it’s anything, but this is impressive even by their standards: a temporary space built around a five-story atrium, with 16-meter (52-foot) sculptures of trunks rising up in the middle, and a restaurant above it all.

Walking in, as large and as finished as this store is, it’s hard to process that it’s temporary. If you didn’t know, you wouldn’t know. If you do know, you think, “If this is temporary, what is their permanent flagship going to be like?”

Between whatever it is they’re building in Paris and this, it’s clear that Louis Vuitton is leaning into the idea of flagship stores as temples to luxury. That’s further reinforced by the new store they officially call “Louis Vuitton Visionary Journeys Shanghai”, or simply The Louis:

An observation, not a criticism: this is religion for an age of secular consumerism.

Come to our temple. Look in awe upon what we have built. Make your offering and leave in the belief you are one with us.

Back to New York City.

Compared to luxury flagships that can feel maze-like, 57th Street feels comprehensible and satisfying. One never feels lost. The layout lends itself to an easy circumnavigation: around each floor and up the escalator to the next. The departments are well-organized.

I visited the store with two women and accompanied them through the women’s ready to wear section, which was significant, verging on vast. On average, I’d say they had similar reactions to the garments, more or less in equal parts: one-third not-our-style, one-third definitely-our-style, and one-third that’s-too-much-but-we-still-love-it.

The boutique is topped off with Le Café Louis Vuitton, the maison’s first restaurant in the US (to the best of my knowledge). This isn’t a vanity project; it’s a serious effort, and it shows.

The food here is simply outstanding, from start to finish. I’ve now dined at two Louis Vuitton-branded cafés—this edition and their outpost in Paris—and from those experiences, it’s clear to me that they want to be known as top-tier restauranteurs. I’d say they’re well on their way.

Tip: If you want to dine at the café, check their page well in advance of your visit. As I write this, they open reservations four weeks in advance, and they book up within hours each day, if not within minutes. If you miss that, check at the café’s reception desk the day of your visit for any cancellations.

From personal experience, I’d say that today, Louis Vuitton is doing better at creating luxury experiences than they are at creating luxury products. I’ve written Field Notes on two of their products so far (Damier Staples Bangle, Takeoff Messenger) and found each of them to be stylish and attractive but also significantly flawed.

Their physical spaces and experiences, though, are a different matter. Their Café Maxime Frédérick in Paris is a delight. Louis Vuitton Maison Champs-Élysées is certainly worthy of its status as their flagship store in France, yet is soon to be replaced (or augmented) by a massive new facility next door. This boutique on 57th Street is the most impressive temporary retail space I’ve ever seen.

No notes this time, Louis.