The expansion of fashion houses into mediums other than fashion is nothing new. (Who doesn’t have a home line these days?) But Louis Vuitton is venturing into a territory no luxury brand has ventured before: airport lounges.
You read that right. In May, the French fashion house opened “Yannick Alleno at Louis Vuitton” above its store at Hamad International Airport in Doha, Qatar. Helmed by a three-Michelin-star French chef, the space caters to Qatar Airways or Vuitton customers in first or business class in a fantastic way: at breakfast and brunch, there are Parisian viennoiseries and smoked fish platters with caviar. For lunch, there are tea sandwiches with Vuitton’s famous fleur monogram. For dinner, travelers can enjoy langoustine carpaccio with geranium essence, lamb shoulder confit with grapefruit flavor, and pilaf with dried fruits and spices. (Or both: the lounge offers à la carte and tasting menus.) For those desperate for caffeine after a red eye, meanwhile, there’s cappuccino “LV” is crafted into foam. “The strength of the menu is, above all, that it is multicultural: it has as much for French as it does for locals and every nationality you pass by,” Alleno told Vogue the concept of.
Photo: Sarah Aubel
