Louis Vuitton's Waikiki store outsells Paris counterpart

Kathy Wong, store manager for Louis Vuitton in Waikiki, displays some of the merchandise. Wong's store regained its title as No. 1 in sales. The outlet benefitted from expansion and a rebound of Japanese tourists. Deborah Booker • The Honolulu Advertiser

The battle between the Waikiki store and the retailer’s outlet on the Champs-Elysees in Paris was a squeaker that heated up in last year’s summer fashion season and lasted through fall and winter. But in the not-so-bitter end, the recently compiled sales results for last year were clear: Louis Vuitton Hawai‘i no ka ‘oi.

"It was a close race," said Gary Hahn, Louis Vuitton Hawai‘i’s vice president and chief operating officer. "We just nosed them out."

Hahn wouldn’t disclose sales figures for the store at 2200 Kalakaua Ave., but they bettered 284 other Louis Vuitton stores around the world and were 2 percent higher than the retailer’s store at 101 Avenue des Champs-Elysees.

The Champs-Elysees store, a few short blocks from the Arc de Triomphe, stole the cherished spot from the Kalakaua store in 1998 when it opened, and held on to the lead in 1999.

"I tip my hat to Mr. Hahn because (the Hawai‘i store) is the first in the world," said Hana Messaouda Kheddaoui, a native of France who moved to Hawai‘i five years ago to sell gourmet food and wine. "From Paris you don’t know that."

The unseating isn’t sitting well with Louis Vuitton Paris, but it is not expected to harm Hawai‘i-France relations, including the state’s annual French Festival, of which Louis Vuitton is a sponsor.

Key to the comeback for Louis Vuitton’s Kalakaua Avenue store was a $6 million expansion and renovation that was completed in October 1999 and transformed the outlet into a "global" store.

Louis Vuitton took over 1,800 square feet of space formerly occupied by sister retailer Christian Dior, which moved to DFS Hawai‘i’s new Galleria. The extra space allowed Louis Vuitton to expand from leather goods into ready-to-wear clothing as well as increase its line of shoes and travel-related accessories.

Global status also provided the store preference of new merchandise over nonglobal-format stores. The store also added on-site clothing alterations and restrooms, and began holding fashion shows. A loft space may be turned into a French-style cafe.

"We really felt we wanted to make an impact and take back the No. 1 spot," said store manager Kathy Wong.

Also playing a supporting role in the store’s comeback were many of the nearly 2 million Japanese tourists who visited Hawai‘i and are Louis Vuitton’s primary customers here.

Local retail analyst Stephany Sofos said young Japanese women have been known to mortgage property or take out loans to buy certain name-brand goods, such as Louis Vuitton.

"The office girls will save their money for years and live in lesser housing just so they have the ability, the discretionary dollars, to shop couture and have the status," Sofos said. "It’s all about image."

But Japanese tourism in the state actually decreased last year. While the number of visitors rose 1.7 percent, to 1.86 million, the total number of days they spent in the Islands declined by 0.6 percent, to 10.31 million.

"It’s quite an accomplishment when you consider our Japanese visitor count went down six-tenths of 1 percent," said Gary Hahn, vice president and chief operating officer of Louis Vuitton Hawai‘i. "Essentially it was even with the previous year."

Louis Vuitton’s Waikiki store, one of six in Hawai‘i, weathered a downturn in the local economy since its first full year of operation in 1993. The nearby store at Ala Moana Center maintained a firm grip on the No. 2 spot.

But Japan’s economic downturn dealt the stores a harsh blow. "Of course, 1998 was a tough year for Hawai‘i, because the yen was the weakest of any year in the decade," Hahn said. "That was the bottom of the economic crisis in Japan."

Hahn said sales began to improve in 1999 with a stronger yen and more Japanese customers, and the rebound continued into last year. In an interview early last year he was "guardedly optimistic" that taking the No. 1 spot back from the Paris store was ambitious but doable.

A strong summer pushed the Waikiki store ahead by a slim 2 percent, a margin the store held on to. "It was very, very close," said Hahn, who reviewed recently compiled sales results.

Ala Moana Louis Vuitton sales continue to be in the top 10, a position that could improve after a renovation and expansion planned for 2002, Hahn said.

However, 10 other stores are scheduled for conversion to the global format this year, bringing the total to 38 and increasing pressure on the Waikiki store to maintain its lead.

Louis Vuitton is the Paris-based unit of LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA, the world’s largest luxury goods retailer and parent of DFS, Celine and Christian Dior.

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