Gucci Adds Italian Flair to Edinburgh

EDINBURGH – Tweed, enchanting castles, tartan and Mary, Queen of Scots have lived for decades on the mood boards of luxury brands and designers. Now they’re taking their love of the culture to a new level, and opening flagships in the Scottish capital.

Multrees Walk in Edinburgh, a square in the New Town, is starting to resemble Fifth Avenue in New York City or New Bond Street in London with all the luxury brands taking up residence. Tag Heuer, Max Mara, Burberry, Canada Goose, and Louis Vuitton are already open there, and the newest addition to the neighborhood is Gucci.

“As as soon as the name Gucci came up, we knew we wanted it,” said Adam Stone, U.K. retail director at Nuveen, which owns and manages the properties in the greater area known as St. James Quarter, a retail shopping center and residential development that measures around 1.7 million square feet.

Gucci’s space spans more than 3,950 square feet and was previously split into two buildings, with Caffè Nero and Boss as tenants. 

Since Nuveen got involved with Multrees Walk two years ago, its goal has been to install luxury stores, given the success of the nearby shopping mall, which it also owns. The mall spans three floors and contains stores for brands such as Cos, H&M, Zara, Reiss, and Bershka. Boss has relocated there.

“There’s always been this misconception that there isn’t a market for [luxury] in Edinburgh, but we’ve always known that was wrong. We’ve only had to look at the Louis Vuitton store to know that,” said Stone.

The French brand has been in Multrees Walk for 10 years, but in the last year it has increased its footprint to 4,000 square feet because of how well the small unit was doing.

Burberry has also extended its lease on the street. 

According to industry sources, Gucci’s concession at Harvey Nichols in Edinburgh was so successful that the brand decided to open a brick-and-mortar store in the city. The Edinburgh unit is Gucci’s first full-price freestanding space outside London and carries women’s and men’s ready-to-wear, accessories, handbags, shoes and jewelry.

Nuveen also has brought in brands including Watches of Switzerland, Michael Kors and Omega, and Stone said that bringing Gucci to the neighborhood “was really important to us.” Stone believes that the opening of the store will attract more high-end labels.

Nuveen currently has two vacant spaces that have had good offers, but according to Stone, “it’s about getting the right brand in.” Gucci and Louis Vuitton stand as anchors for Multrees Walk, which Nuveen hopes will become a luxury hub.

Gucci’s store adds a sheen of glamour and newness to Edinburgh’s historic buildings. The store resembles an art gallery with its Brutalist exterior and shiny, bright interiors at the top of the street.

The store takes elements from the brand’s Via Montenapoleone store in Milan and reflects creative director Sabato De Sarno’s vision for minimalism with an edge. There is optical marble flooring with carpeting and sofas in Gucci Rosso Ancora red, acid green and yellow; metal railings and shelves, and fresh calla lilies. The fitting rooms are covered with soft moquette and have artisanal Venetian “pulegoso” glass door handles and rails in acid yellow.

Gucci is highlighting its Italian craftsmanship at the new store.

Greeting customers are three mannequins made from white canvas. One is dressed in a white tweed jacket with a matching skinny belt and miniskirt; the one next to it is in an embellished coat in the brand’s signature red. It retails for ​​7,850 pounds. The third is wearing a matching striped tweed lamé jacket and skirt. All three looks are finished with different variations of the 1947 Bamboo bag.

The space has accessories galore — monogram suitcases and duffel bags are dotted all around; a belt stand holds more than 15 belts, the majority of which have interlocking Gs. There are glass jewelry cases and two shoe walls, one in a light moss green velvet backdrop and the other in acid yellow.

“[The store design] invites our clients to embark on a beautifully tailored experience, showcasing the exceptional quality of the house’s products. Here, Gucci’s fashion authority and timeless luxury are center stage,” Jean-François Palus, the brand’s president and chief executive officer, told WWD at the opening of the Milan store in December.

Top-spending clients had a first look inside Gucci’s Edinburgh store earlier this week. Stone remarked that the opening has been buzzy because of the return of international customers, and a strong international student base.

Edinburgh Council’s leader Cammy Day said there has been interest in the shopping area from locals and tourists alike.

“We’re increasingly appealing to people from Glasgow, which was traditionally seen as the retail center of Scotland — our research shows that people are now coming to shop on Multrees Walk,” Stone added.

According to the 2024 luxury report from YouGov, the British public opinion and data company, 8 percent of future luxury spenders are more likely to live in Scotland — a small, but mighty number considering that London’s population is 19 times that of Scotland’s and London’s future luxury spenders only recorded 19 percent in the report.

Day revealed that investors’ confidence remains high in Edinburgh with “plenty of opportunities to come.”

Gucci and De Sarno are certainly putting the focus on Britain.

The creative director staged his cruise 2025 show in London, while the brand’s New Bond Street store, which opened last year, is an art mecca. Gucci is cooperating with British artists and Frieze London, while the brand’s cruise 2025 campaign is titled “We Will Always Have London.” It stars Debbie Harry and was filmed in London.

According to research by the influencer data analytics company WeArisma, Edinburgh generated 1.1 million pounds in total media value and more than 22 million engagements in the last 12 months from KOLs, celebrities and press.