The Connecticut family that runs the most expensive specialty shops in the nation is sharing their vision for high-end shopping in the U.S.
The Mitchells opened their new Wilkes Bashford store in Palo Alto, California, on Wednesday. The new store is about three times larger and filled with the top luxury brands from abroad and the U.S.
The new Stanford Shopping Center store is 25,000 square feet, up from 9,000. Co-CEO Bob Mitchell calls it the nation’s largest new multibrand specialty shop.
He says this is the first store they’ve built from scratch since Richards in Greenwich opened in 2000. The Mitchell family has eight shops with four names on the East and West Coasts.
Mitchells in Westport, Richards in Greenwich, Wilkes Bashford in San Francisco, and Marios in Portland. Sales now exceed $200 million.
Mitchell labeled Palo Alto “Wall Street West,” San Francisco’s wealthiest bedroom town. Stanford University, top IT companies, financial, consulting, and legal firms are there.
“Our customer base in Silicon Valley has grown a lot in the last twenty years or so,” stated. “While most stores are closing and only doing business online, we are thriving and growing as a multibrand luxury player in the brick-and-mortar space thanks to our unbeatable selection of goods and our dedication to and loyalty to our customers.”
He stated, “We think it’s important to have a new, modern a store environment today, and we also believe in the multibrand environment.” He noted that high-end buyers usually select one store with numerous top brands and great salespeople over a group of one-brand businesses.
He remarked, “We had the best team in Palo Alto before, but they didn’t have the room to do as much as we think they can.” He stated the business “added six or seven powerhouse sellers to the team to help us reach our goals.” Our prosperity depends on that.
He wouldn’t specify how much the Palo Alto store sells, but the family aims to raise sales by 60 to 100% in the first year and more than twice as much in three years.
He said it should sell as much as both Connecticut outlets. “We should be able to get a piece of the market.”
Mitchell claims that his cousin Scott Mitchell, Bill Mitchell’s son, runs all West Coast businesses. These shops generate 40% of business revenues. This includes Marios in Portland, Seattle, and downtown San Francisco’s Wilkes-Bashford.
Added, “Scott ran Greenwich for us and moved to the West Coast right after Labor Day.” “He will work out of Seattle, but he will spend half of his time in Palo Alto to be close to his family.” When Richards expanded to include women’s garments in 2000, Scott Mitchell joined the company.
San Francisco-based Gensler designed the Palo Alto store. The business is named after the Italian term “costiera,” meaning “coastal.” The light, open interior is inspired by California’s beaches and composed of natural materials.
The store will showcase over 41 new and expanded designer lines for men and women. Mitchell commented “This is about the best for us.” “We feel like we needed to put money into Palo Alto because it’s where we sell more high-end items than any other store.”
Each gender accounts for 40% of the mix, with jewelry making up the remaining 20%. Mitchell: “That’s our sweet spot.” “The mix of goods is a lot like what we have in Connecticut, and we added a lot of new brands.” We believe all our names can grow.
Zegna, Brunello Cucinelli, Brioni, and Kiton—the four biggest men’s brands—have shops in the new store. Also getting longer conversations are Fedeli, Pescarolo, and Baldassari.
New men’s labels include Canali, Thom Browne, Parajumpers, Zero Gravity by Tombolini, Valextra, Santoni, Alessandro Gherardi, Officine Creative, Wahts, Sease, Moorer, and Enrico Mandelli. Expect more spring releases.
Brunello Cucinelli, Kiton, and Akris create the most garments for women, although The Row, Khaite, Bottega Veneta, Missoni, Carolina Herrera, Gianvito Rossi, Amina Muaddi, and Jimmy Choo have grown.
Aaron Henry, Pomellato, Sidney Garber, Nam Cho, Sylva & Cie, and others are sold at the new store’s 21 jewelry displays under a large skylight. A separate room will be available for discreet clothing shopping.
Mitchell also noted that the Palo Alto store features a new 2,500-square-foot private retail space on the second floor. The dining room, fireplace, and wall fittings allow VIP customers to shop and style secretly.
He said, “We’ll also use the space for events, lunches, holiday parties, and other similar things.” “This is something we want in all of our stores, but since we’re making this one from scratch, we were able to add it.”
The store’s biggest sellers touched on the Mitchell family’s progress. He remarked, “The Mitchells’ honesty and dedication to their clients set an example for our whole industry.” Thom Browne is part of Gildo Zegna’s Zegna Group.
He adds “I am excited for this new adventure with the Mitchells family in Palo Alto.” I’m glad we’re close friends after 30 years of working together. They are best when luxury is involved.
Melissa Beste, Akris CEO, said, “Akris, as a family-owned business, shares these values, and we value our long-term partnership.” A firm rarely displays such true care for its people, and it shows in everything you do.
Kiton’s owners, the Paones, were honored to “share in this important milestone.” Our families’ longstanding relationship is important to us. We share motivation, vision, and objectives. Continue performing well and have a fantastic future.
Founded in 1966, Wilkes Bashford sells clothes. Bringing top European designers to Northern California is their specialty. The Mitchell family bought the company in 2009, and Bashford died in 2016.
The family is contemplating the Palo Alto store this week. However, this is its third major West Coast facelift in two years. The business spent over $10 million to develop the Palo Alto store, renovate the Wilkes main store in San Francisco, and open a Marios flagship in Portland.
Marios’ store was completely renovated, with a 3,500-square-foot women’s department, additional designer ready-to-wear, shoes, purses, jewelry, and a larger men’s premium athletic section.
Four of the seven Wilkes-Bashford floors in San Francisco have been refurbished. The luxury sportswear and Cucinelli and Zegna shops for males are larger, while the women’s fashion floor is refurbished.
Norma and Ed Mitchell launched a Westport men’s apparel company in 1958. This began the Mitchell family business. Richards opened in Greenwich 1995. Marsh debuted in Huntington, NY, in 2005. Wilkes Bashford launched in 2009, Marios in 2015.
