Designer Monique Lhuillier to open first European store in London

American bridal and ready-to-wear designer Monique Lhuillier is to open her first European standalone store in London’s Mayfair.

Scheduled to open at 69 South Audley Street this spring, the brand said it had scouted a UK location prior the pandemic, but the deal had fallen through.

In a statement to WWD, Tom Bugbee, the brand’s chief executive officer and Lhuillier’s husband, said: “London was always our goal in terms of the international marker. It is an easier gateway to Europe. The ways of doing business there are similar to the U.S., and there is no language barrier. From our wholesale accounts [such as Harrods], we knew it was a market for us.”

The Los Angeles-based company was founded in 1996 and is best known for its high end bridal gowns and eveningwear. A store in Paris is also on the brand’s agenda: “We would love to open a store in Paris,” Mr Bugbee told WWD. “But first, we want to see the traffic pattern in the London store and where customers are coming from. Are they European or U.K.-based? When we answer those questions, I think Paris is one of the targets on our list.”