Things Are Looking Up(town) for Rag and Bone

All the uptown girls can stay living in their uptown world—while maintaining their downtown style—now that Rag & Bone is opening a new boutique tomorrow at 73rd and Madison. Located inside a four-floor, 9000-square-foot Federal-style townhouse (and former Chase bank) it’s “definitely the biggest and grandest of the bunch,” says designer David Neville. “We’ve been looking for a little while, and clearly there’s a lot of business to be had in that part of town. Proenza Schouler is opening a store up there and I think there’s quite a diverse group of customers. We’re definitely downtown in our DNA, but it’s not like the uptown girl isn’t buying Rag & Bone—she definitely is.”

In the fall, men’s customers will get a second floor haberdashery. Until then they’ll share with women a parlor floor outfitted with dark wood floors, suede and canvas Chesterfield ottomans with Rag & Bone buttons, the brand’s signature brass garment racks, four modern welded steel tables (topped with leather, white marble, polished wood, and steel surfaces) and a cashier made from the old teller’s desk, sans bulletproof glass, which they’ve glossed up with a white marble top and black lacquer inlays. “It’s a little more refined, our aesthetic is evolving,” says the designer. Distressed with a bone-white wall treatment, the basement will house the fitting rooms, positioned just outside the vault. “Nothing is going to be inside that thing,” assures Neville. “It’s quite scary. You get locked in there, you’re never coming out.” 

Unlike other houses who outsource design duties to the Peter Marinos and Ryan Korbans of the world, Neville and partner Marcus Wainwright handle everything in-house. “We actually have our own warehouse in Sunset Park, Brooklyn with a very skilled team of five guys who are on the payroll, that actually custom make the fixtures and furniture for the stores,” says Neville, admitting they might someday enter into the furniture game in the next few years. “We’re getting quite good at it, but right now we’ve got enough keeping us busy.” 

Rag & Bone, 909 Madison Avenue at 73 Street.