LONDON — Miu Miu’s newly refurbished store on New Bond Street is a blend of literary salon, indie cinema and Mayfair private members’ club, adorned in Lake Como silks and a palette of pale blue, pistachio, and acid yellow.

The new concept, which debuted here this week, is centered on “cultural exchange, community, and conversation,” and spotlights the brand’s clothing and accessories collections and recent collaborations.

Upstairs in the salon part of the store, there are pieces — including a cream sheer lace slipdress — from the new Miu Miu Upcycled collection, created in collaboration with costume-, production- and set-designer Catherine Martin.

Martin’s first film short, “Grande Envie,” is projected onto a wall nearby (above the stainless steel staircase), while still images from the Upcycled campaign adorn the walls.

Large blond walnut tables are inspired by desks traditionally used in literary salons and libraries, ideal for the Miu Miu gal, a book and film lover who lives for discussion, analysis and the perfect pair of napa leather loafers.

The ground floor has a more industrial feel with a studded metal floor, double-height ceilings, and more places to sit, hang out and make conversation. There are stools by the jewelry bar and the wallet bar and a whole separate area dedicated to footwear and lounging.

For those who prefer to wander rather than sit, the windows are double-height, allowing for people-watching on the busy corner of New Bond and Bruton streets.

Even the outside of the 7,500-square-foot store is different. The dark marble facade is out, and a softer, white stone has replaced it. A chrome Miu Miu logo is lit up like a beacon.

“This store is entirely unique in its concept and execution. The focus has been on creating something specifically tailored to London, both in spirit and in atmosphere,” said a spokesperson for the brand. 

The opening is big for Miu Miu, and its parent Prada Group, in so many ways.

The store first opened in 2010. It had been shut for refurbishment since March and the official reopening this week is part of a wider retail expansion plan. Prada Group is targeting 10 to 15 percent square footage growth for Miu Miu in the current fiscal year.  

This London Miu Miu is even more special. As reported, Prada Holding, which manages the company’s industrial and real estate investments, agreed to purchase the entire six-floor building at 150 New Bond for an estimated 250 million pounds.

Sources said the deal is set to close later this month.

Prada, which is buying the building from the global investment manager M&G, is the latest luxury group to make a big-ticket investment on New Bond Street.

LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, Kering, Swatch, Richemont and Chanel have all been buying properties on the street, both as a real estate investment and as a way of securing space for their brands.

According to Cushman & Wakefield’s latest “Main Streets Across the World” report, New Bond Street is the third most expensive shopping street in the world, after Via Montenapoleone in Milan and upper Fifth Avenue in Manhattan.

In 2024, rents were around $1,762 a square foot annually, 13 percent higher than in 2023. Miu Miu’s neighbors include Balenciaga, Hermès, Burberry and Roberto Cavalli.

Miu Miu is going big on VVIP experiences in the new store. Even before the official opening, the team was entertaining big spenders upstairs, where the feel is part-salon, part-bourgeois boudoir, part-gallery space in the spirit of Fondazione Prada in Milan. 

The Prada spokesperson described the floor as “a space for sharing and conversation, a kind of contemporary salon. The idea of the ‘living room’ as a place of gathering informed the design, where clusters of seating create fluid, intimate environments that encourage dialogue and exchange.

“It reflects Miu Miu’s ongoing exploration of community and culture, offering a warm and welcoming setting that feels both personal and thoughtful,” the spokesperson added.

An extra-long sofa lines a mirrored wall, while vintage furniture sourced from top antiques dealers — and fully restored — has been dotted around the space.

The floors are done in chestnut-toned wood, with acid green carpets made from bamboo silk, while the VVIP suite has its own private sitting room.

There, cabinet doors have been lined with jacquard floral fabrics — in lavender, pistachio and green — all sourced from Prada Group’s archive. The fil coupé textiles were made by a long-standing Prada supplier based near Lake Como.

On that floor, but out of view, there is also an industrial kitchen with a full-time chef serving up gelato, biscuits, coffee, bubbly and other treats. Food and drink aren’t too much of a stretch for Prada, which also owns Marchesi on nearby Mount Street, and operates the pistachio-tinged Prada Caffè at Harrods.  

Pre-opening, the VVIP team was serving up those treats to customers craving Miuccia Prada’s designs, as well as her Milanese hospitality.

The store’s significant refurbishment reflects the runaway success of Miu Miu, which accounts for one-third of Prada Group’s sales and has been a major driver behind overall growth in the past few years.

In the first three months of fiscal 2025, Miu Miu’s retail sales rose 60 percent, following an 84 percent uptick in the fourth quarter of 2024. The surge at Miu Miu fueled Prada Group’s overall revenue rise of 13 percent to 1.34 billion euros in the quarter.

Leather goods remained the fastest-growing category at Miu Miu, supported by the spring 2025 campaign celebrating the brand’s signature Matelassé line.

Bernstein’s Luca Solca described Miu Miu’s first-quarter performance as “remarkable,” and said in a separate report that the brand remains “a heavyweight” in China, one of its largest markets.

Solca expects Miu Miu’s momentum to persist in the near-term, arguing that it has “captured the season’s zeitgeist; has the full-time focus of a highly influential creative director in Miuccia Prada, and has crafted and styled compelling communication campaigns that have resonated with global consumers.”

Solca is only concerned about the medium-term, and believes that growing Miu Miu beyond 2 billion to 3 billion euros in revenue will be challenging for a number of reasons. He said the “medium-to-long term exercise” of embedding the newly acquired Versace into the group will likely spread management thin.

Prada appears to be ready for the Miu Miu challenge, installing a new chief executive officer, Silvia Onofri, in February. Onofri, who formerly helmed Napapijri and has worked for Bally and Bulgari, succeeded Benedetta Petruzzo, who left the Italian brand to join Dior as managing director.

Miu Miu is planning to celebrate the new Bond Street opening on Thursday with an evening at Koko, the music venue in Camden Town that will be turned into the Miu Miu Club London 2025.

The event will be curated by British musician Little Simz, who will play live. There will also be specially commissioned performances and DJ sets taking place throughout the night.