Covent Garden, already a major London focus for beauty retailers, is enjoying new activity with two UK debuts, a relocation and an upsize. 

Operator Shaftesbury Capital has announced Byredo, Matiere Premiere, Initio Parfums Privés and Parfums de Marly “will be enhancing the iconic destination, solidifying its position as a key beauty hub within the UK”.

First Byredo’s set to open a new 1,100 sq ft boutique in Covent Garden’s Market Building, joining its existing nearby location in Seven Dials. It will feature an assortment of high-end fragrances, make-up, home, leather goods and accessories.

It will be joined by fragrance brand Matiere Premiere taking a new 50 sq ft store space on King Street, becoming its debut flagship space in the UK.

Cédric Meiffret, co-founder and GM of Matiere Premiere, said: “Covent Garden has long been a location that embraces and celebrates innovation, creativity, and craftsmanship. There is no other place more suited to host our first UK flagship. This location will be an opportunity for clients to experience the direct link between the most beautiful natural raw materials and [our] fragrances, surrounded by the top labels within the luxury beauty industry.”

Niche French fragrance house Initio Parfums Privés is also set to open its first UK store in Covent Garden, moving into sister brand Parfums de Marly’s former 246 sq ft unit within the Market Building.

That means Parfums de Marly, “part of Covent Garden’s luxury fabric for the last three years”, will be upsizing and relocating to James Street. The new 1,000 sq ft store providing the brand with a larger more focused presence.

Julien Sausset, CEO of both Parfums de Marly and Inito Parfums Privés, said: “Our move to James Street echoes the sheer growth we’ve experienced at Covent Garden, and the loyalty we have built with landlord Shaftesbury Capital and the numerous visitors over the years. Our new space at James Street will allow us to elevate our customer experience even further and offer more services and ranges that reflect our heritage, opulence, and artistry.”

William Oliver, director of Retail and Restaurant Leasing at Shaftesbury Capital, said: “Four exciting new fragrance brands have committed to Covent Garden, which speaks volumes about our role as the leading destination for luxury beauty in the UK, already home to a host of world-class fragrance houses and an epicentre where brands can launch, innovate, and thrive.”

Covent Garden’s roster of  luxury fragrance/beauty brands reads like a sector who’s who, extending to Charlotte Tilbury, Jo Malone London, Miller Harris, Penhaligon’s, Chanel, Tom Ford, D&G Beauty, Guerlain, MAC, NARS, Elemis, Aesop, Le Labo, Glossier, Creed, Diptique, and Neal’s Yard Remedies.

This news coincides with Covent Garden’s new ‘Big Beauty’ event running across 4-14 September throughout the central London neighbourhood. 

A “celebration of beauty and wellness”, the debut 10-day event encompasses skincare, fragrance, make-up and wellbeing and will see Covent Garden’s Piazza and surrounding streets “transform into a multi-sensory playground of beauty experiences”.