WANT Les Essentiels Opens First U.S. Boutique in New York

Designed for today and built for tomorrow, WANT Les Essentiels is pleased to further share its creative vision with the opening of its first global boutique.

Located at 301 W 4th, on a charming, tree-lined street in the heart of the West Village, the welcoming environment was conceived as a way to restore an intimate, warm and trusted shopping experience within the frenetic retail landscape - a place where past meets present and whereupon entering the boutique is akin to returning home.

Curated by co-founders Byron and Dexter Peart, the space draws guests into a beautiful townhouse, designed to resemble the layout of one's home. Light shines through grand floor-to-ceiling windows, flooding the boutique's first-floor "living room," which houses the complete WANT Les Essentiels accessories collection. The adjacent room, the "wardrobe," expands into men's and women's apparel, including the WANT Les Essentiels footwear collection. Guests continue their journey into the "tearoom," where they are invited to pause for tea as they peruse the carefully edited selection of essential tools for living.

"Our brand has always spoken to an inherent sense of discovery and community," says Byron and Dexter. "The way we live our lives, traveling between Montreal and New York, we have come to value permanence and a strong connection to something familiar. With this boutique, we wanted to create an environment that feels comfortable, honest and at peace."

The space is refined, shying away from trends. Architecture is central to the WANT Les Essentiels brand and, just like its products, both the building itself and materials chosen for its interior exude timelessness. European mid-century furnishings, American minimal art, and eclectic worldly treasures accent the house while highlighting the building's historic features. Magnificent domed windows and sloping archways create a dynamic ambiance; black and white elements throughout the space parallel the duality that underlies the brand's philosophy.

Curation and meticulous editing are at the heart of the boutique. The concept of necessity over seasonality pervades throughout, as does an appreciation of the simple things in life and objects that stands the test of time. The boutique will offer timeless items to be cherished in the wardrobe and the home, as well as essential items for a weekend getaway or trip overseas.

"We wanted to offer guests curated finds, which we've sourced from all over the world - items that are 'tools for living.' This concept is very innate to the brand: essential items that you need and would want to travel with, that you like to have around all the time, that give you a sense of security and necessity in your life” explain Byron and Dexter. 

Guests are encouraged to discover quintessential WANT Les Essentiels favorites amongst carefully selected essential finds from brands across fashion, home and accessories, such as TOMORROWLAND (Tokyo), Commes des Garçons Forever (Tokyo), Aspesi (Milan), Filippa K (Stockholm), 1205 (London) and Casely-Hayford (London), as well as Byredo (Stockholm), Carl Auböck (Vienna), Malle w. Trousseau (Paris), Hasami Porcelain (Nagasaki) and Paper & Tea (Berlin).