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Barcelona remains unavoidable for international luxury brands. Despite the fact that crime has increased in recent years in the city and, with it, the thefts of luxury watches, the brands of the guild continue to bet on it. Because insecurity also takes its toll in other cities such as Madrid, Paris and Monte Carlo, for example, and because Barcelona is a focus of attraction for tourists, a vital type of consumer for the high-end sector.
The latest to settle in the great luxury thoroughfare that is the Paseo de Gracia in Barcelona has been Hublot, owned by the French colossus LVMH. Hand in hand with the distributor Rabat Jewelry, has just opened one of its largest boutiques in Europe, 107 square meters. It is Hublot’s seventh point of sale in the Catalan capital, while in Madrid it has four (last year it welcomed its own space on Calle Serrano, also franchised by Rabat).
Its interior, presided over by a Chandelier lamp, present in every store of the firm, surprises with its profusion of mirrors, which are combined with glass, graphite, steel and Alcantara leather to welcome customers in an exquisite atmosphere. It is a way of inviting those who enter to soak up the “art of fusion” of the ensign, a concept that refers to the fact that theirs is the mixture. Since more than 30 years ago, when it combined gold with rubber straps in its watches, it set itself apart from other Swiss watchmakers and began to make a name for itself. And it continues to take risks with materials, colors and complications.
The color and energy of the new Barcelona boutique is provided by some of the pieces from the Hublot collection on display, such as the Classic Fusion and Big Bang watches set with multicolored gemstones. Also the huge pop art style paintings that are inspired by the watches in the brand’s catalog and that dot the walls of the establishment.
At the back there is an area for customers who want privacy. It has sofas in soft tones (white and gray) and a small bar with premium drinks to entertain visitors.
The inauguration of this store, late last November, was attended by the CEO of the watchmaker since 2004, Ricardo Guadalupe, who was surrounded by his partner Jordi Rabat, head of the jewelry company that bears his surname, and other celebrities such as footballer David Villa, professional paddle tennis player Alejandro Galán and Victoria Federica Marichalar.