Twelve months after welcoming Lee into its brand portfolio, True Alliance has opened the first Sydney flagship for the denim stalwart.
The American-originating brand now has a central retail site on Sydney's George Street in the revamped The Galeries arcade. The 114 sqm store was designed by interiors firm Coma and is home to Lee's denim and fashion collections for men and women, as well as the label's '101' denim workwear collection for men.
Materials utilised in the Lee store design include rose and Oregon woods, steel fittings and industrial lighting. A nine metre timber bar comprises the key merchandising space, while 1940s and '50s furnishings and polished floorboards complete the vintage look.
The Sydney site adds to Lee's existing flagship on Melbourne's Chapel Street in South Yarra.
Upon taking on the local distribution rights for Lee in early 2010, True Alliance general manager David Smith revealed to Ragtrader a small number of Lee flagship stores would be rolled out over a three year period.
“We are not planning to become a chain of retail stores as obviously that would cannibalise our very well-established wholesale business,” Smith said at the time.
Lee is stocked in 350 doors across Australia including David Jones, General Pants, Live, Edge, Universal and Rogues. The brand was formerly operated in Australia by Pacific Brands.
Lee first entered the Australian market in 1973 and is owned by US company VF Corporation.