Luxury brands from Gucci to Chanel are placing billion-dollar bets on in-store shopping

• Luxury brands seek new retail storefronts in a bet that shoppers prefer in-store experiences.
• The Journal reported Kering, which owns Gucci and Saint Laurent, spent $1.4 billion on a building in Milan.
• E-commerce surged during the pandemic, but luxury brands thrive in hands-on environments.

While vacancies in retail real estate have surged since the pandemic, luxury brands from Gucci to Chanel are betting big bucks that their in-store experience will draw in shoppers for the long haul.