Your First Look at the Brand New Lilly Pulitzer Store in King of Prussia
We got in before anyone else to give you a sneak peek of the remodeled store.
When we got an email inviting us to get a first look at the new Lilly Pulitzer store in the King of Prussia mall and to have a one-on-one with the president of the company, we jumped at the chance. (And then felt sort of guilty: For two girls who wear a lot of black, us getting the inside scoop instead of a pair of print-and-pattern diehards didn’t seem fair, almost like the time we hosted an event with Eagles player Brent Celek without really knowing what he did.)
But we took a store tour (and, man, it is fabulous), met with a handful of the Lilly staff and discovered this: Maybe wearing all black isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. And whatever happy-go-lucky Kool-Aid they’re sipping over there in the Pink Palace (that’s what they call their corporate office, also located in King of Prussia), well, we’d like some.
No moody fall shades to be found here. | Lauren McGrath.
The new Lilly Pulitzer store is in the same corner spot just outside of Nordstrom on the second floor, and hasn’t expanded in size, although you’d never believe it. What was once a choppy footprint is now a bright, open space with clear glass walls (“Lilly girls want to see the clothing,’ explained president Michelle Kelly).
Eight of the nine fitting rooms. | Lauren McGrath.
The standouts, though, are the dressing rooms. There are now nine of them (up from six, which will surely help with fitting room backups), and each is different. Most have been hand-painted by the 12 print artists that Lilly Pulitzer has on staff. One is entirely appliqued – by staffers who are pros at “shell application” – with shells found in a Palm Beach grotto. (Seriously, go and look at this; it’s your shore house dream room.) Others are hand-painted with patterns that won’t actually hit stores until spring.
The bright, airy store feels like a quick trip to sunny Florida. | Lauren McGrath.
“Fall is the ‘f’ word to us,” says Kelly. This is why, when other stores are awash in moody burgundys and browns, with heavy leather and fur details, the Lilly Pulitzer store is still all shells and bright colors and palm trees. It feels like a vacation.
Massive mirrors throughout the store are also framed in ornate seashell appliqué. | Lauren McGrath.
But though the brand doesn’t adhere to traditional fashion seasons (it’s all resortwear, all the time), it does change and modernize as necessary. See: the splashes of gilt and clean white walls in the store proper.
All of the art in-store has been hand-painted by the same artists who design new Lilly textiles. | Lauren McGrath.
“Our customer, she’s very modern and she does travel to Palm Beach and sees these shiny gold trims or the latest seagrass wallpaper that has that thread of metallic running through it, and it appeals to her, and the ornateness of the dressing room with the shells. She really gets the details. The last store was fab, but it was just a little heavy. And this store has that lightness and boutique-ness that feels right for right now,” says Jane Paradis, the vice president of creative marketing. (And yes, it’s is pronounced ‘paradise,’ a fitting surname for a woman who works in a place whose aesthetic is ripped straight from sunny, shiny Palm Beach.)
Even the bathrooms are covered in bright hues floor-to-ceiling, leaving no corner un-patterned. | Lauren McGrath.
Glass walls invite the casual shopper to step inside. | Lauren McGrath.
From small watercolors by Lilly designers to ornate coral chandeliers, every inch of the store has been designed to pink perfection. | Lauren McGrath.
The store opens privately tonight, and to the public tomorrow. Can’t swing a trip to KOP on a work day? You’re in luck: The real party happens this Saturday. Ten percent of all proceeds goes to CHOP, and they’ll have food, drinks and a DJ on hand to make you feel like you’re actually on vacation and not in a mall in the middle of fall. Bon voyage!
