Discover Printemps: NYC's Spectacular New Department Store

My wife went to NYC a month or three ago with a friend and came back with stories of an amazing new department store she had been to that she thought I’d love. She was right! Printemps, a high-end French department store founded in 1865, currently only has two international locations, and the one in NYC just opened this year.

I have to say, it really was a lot of fun exploring this place. The design and presentation are very unique, and each area of the store – of which there are many! – has a very distinctive style. Is it a bit ostentatious and over the top? Sure, but you know me: I’m a big fan of spaces with their own character and personality.

Printemps is located at 1 Wall Street in the former BNY Mellon Building, which is spectacular in its own right and one of NYC’s Art Deco treasures, though there is some debate over whether it should be considered Gothic Modern. Built between 1929-1931, the 654-foot skyscraper originally served as the headquarters of Irving Trust, a commercial bank that previously operated out of the Woolworth Building. Irving Trust was acquired by Bank of New York in 1988, and in 2014 the building was sold to Macklowe Properties, who planned to lease retail space on the first floors and condos on the rest.

It’s honestly a bit depressing reading about the renovations, as it appears a lot of the original interior of the structure was demolished for condos that nobody is buying. As of November 2024, less than a fifth of the 566 units have been sold. While the iconic Red Room has been preserved, one can’t help but wonder what else vanished and whether or not it was adequately documented. I’m going to try not to dwell on that since Printemps isn’t responsible for the renovations. In addition, the construction of the Irvine Trust Building itself necessitated the demolition of three buildings, including the Manhattan Life Insurance Building, which was once the tallest building in the world. That’s pretty sad, too, although at least those buildings weren’t replaced by condos.

So, let’s stick with the positives: the Red Room is phenomenal! It was called “an over-the-top dream of period pizzazz that makes Baz Luhrmann’s Gatsby look like a work of sober realism” by Curbed writer Ian Volner, and it’s an apt description. The Red Room contains nearly 9,000 square feet of mosaics primarily consisting of red, black, and gold marble and its flamboyant opulence was intended to assure potential clients of the bank’s financial stability after the 1929 market crash. Even if department stores aren’t your thing, you’re really cheating yourself if you’re nearby and don’t poke your head in just to see this room. And if department stores ARE your thing? Then you definitely won’t want to miss Printemps!