We met up with Niccolo Ricci, CEO of the family owned luxury menswear company Stefano Ricci when he was in town to open the new Casa Stafano Ricci in Singapore. Here is a sneak look at the club.
The Casa Stefano Ricci Singapore
Stefano Ricci is a ultra-luxury maison specialising in clothing for gentlemen, but have extended to share their taste in life with their clients. Beyond clothes, they produce accessories like cuff links, belts, and also luxury lifestyle items like cigar accessories. They also have been invited by their clients to do the interiors of homes and yachts. And now also offer home decoration items. The product line extends to crystal ware, silver ware, and porcelain. They produce almost all their products in Italy, typically within the Florence/Tuscany vicinity, and are committed to ancient methods of production.
Through their acquisition of the Antico Setificio Fiorentino, they rescued the industry’s centuries old traditional silk weaving methods. The mill still uses 18th-century looms and historical warping machines to produce bespoke silk, damask, taffeta, and lampas fabrics. Stefano Ricci uses the exquisite products to create exclusive, handcrafted textiles for its menswear collections, tailored shirts, and interior projects.
The Casa Stefano Ricci concept has been in development since 2000, when the first lounge opened in Shanghai. The brand has been present in Asia since 1993. The CEO, Niccolo Ricci hosted us to a preview of the lounge.
Interesting concept. This is a members club which is by invitation only. And it is located at the top floor of 268 Orchard Road. The lounge is beautifully appointed, with the interiors developed in Florence, where the company is based.
And the opulence of the lounge is beautifully accented by tasteful graphics and objets.
Within the 340 square meters lounge area, there are five private rooms and a members bar. The interior design is by Stefano Ricci himself, in part the lounge is used to showcase their Interior Design and supplies department.
The Casa is arranged with five rooms, and a members can move with their guests to enjoy the cigars, wines and even have dinner on a menu by Chef Denis Lucchi of the one-Michelin starred Bouna Terra.
Above the lounge, is a six meter high artistic glass ceiling, crafted in Florence and transported to Singapore to be assembled in-situ. The top floor of the building has an eleven meter ceiling, and the hand painted glass serves as a false ceiling to hide the services above, but also is a splendid way to have the roof over the head. The work is executed by the fabled Italian house of Mellini Mosaici.
The Stefano Ricci egale soars as the center piece of the ceiling. And is also prominent as a sculpture on the hall way.
The walls are hand finished aqua bianca marble. The marble is a cladding and noted for its fine grain and pure white tone. The texture are made to look like the family home in Florence. The premises houses wine cellars with private label bottles made for the maison by Tenuta Sette Ponti . They also obtained a smoking license for one of the rooms and offer a well stocked cigar bar with a private labeling with Arturo Fuente.
Being proud of their Italian heritage, Niccolo tells me that the only French item in the lounge are the champagnes.
They have a private label champange, made for them by by the champagne house of Llhulier. More of this in the July episode of our Champagne journal.
The watch
What interest us was the watch worn by Niccolo. Called the Octagon, the watch’s bezel echos the octagonal symbol of the maison.
The watch is a available as limited editions of 10 for three models – the Chronograph, the Annual Calendar and a Perpetual Calendar as shown on Niccolo’s wrist above. This is a rather large watch measuring 45.5mm x 14.8mm, and is in white gold. Niccolo told me that the watch is manufactured for them by none other than Parmigiani Fleurier and Vaucher.
The case back is hunter style with a white gold cuvette over the sapphire case. This the space is used for a hand-etched pattern. Standard models like the QP that Niccolo was wearing shows an antique English-style (inglesina) floral scrollwork.
The watches are also available in a special Diamond Lux edition. These feature a gemset case, and the engraving on the hunter case back depict majestic animals such as the lion, elephant, tiger, and eagle.
Closing thoughts
The Casa is luxurious. Sometimes over the top, ostentatious even. But the space is certainly very masculine and the aesthetics are well selected, and exudes billionaire vibes. And this is the top luxury lifestyle that Stefano Ricci attracts.
The concept of a private lounge is also interesting. Especially for a retailer. But again, it is on point and serves the purpose well. Exclusivity is the key proposition. Well appointed interiors another. And of course a high level of service and quality is a critical component. Casa Stefano Ricci delivers on all counts. Membership is by private invitation only. I understand that the first gate to entry is to have spent a certain amount at the Stefano Ricci boutique. Selected members can bring their guests to the Casa premises,. Access is a quiet brag. The Casa is open all day, every day of the week.
