CONSTRUCTION PREVIEW: A Peek Inside Ralph Lauren's New Store

Nobody is more excited than The Shophound when a construction site leaves the front door open and we can get a look inside. The other day we got a good gander at what's going on inside the upcoming Ralph Lauren store at 72^nd and Madison which confirmed our expectation that no expense will be spared for this flagship. No designer is more obsessed with the environment where his products are sold than Ralph is, and for the store to be devoted to his Women's and Home collections, he is creating a Gilded Age mansion meant to look as if it has been standing on that corner for a hundred years. Clearly, the interior is set to rival that of the historic Rhinelander Mansion across the street which has served as Lauren's main flagship for the past 25 years. His ever-expanding product lines began testing the landmarked mansion's space limitations almost as soon as the store opened, and since then, he has managed to slowly assume all of the retail space on both sides of the block of Madison Avenue between 71^st and 72^nd streets —which was still  not enough room. The new building should go a long way to finally allowing him to present something close to the full range of his offerings.

It doesn't look like the store will possibly be ready for Fashion's Night Out less than two weeks away on September, but miracles have been known to happen when it comes to getting stores like this ready on time. If anyone has the resources to pull that off, it's Ralph.