Located at the renowned Faena hotel on Miami Beach, Curio is an eclectic boutique for the elevated fashion audience. Created by Jeffrey Lasota and Danielle Licata, who have a collective history with leading fashion powerhouses such as Stella McCartney, Belstaff, Chloé, and Coterie, the 20,000-square-foot space creates a multi-sensory experience that features fashion, jewelry, art, objects, and food. Here, Lasota and Licata discuss their vision for the brand and how the luxury community is brought together under one roof.
Haute Living: What was the vision behind Curio, and how did it come to fruition?
Jeffrey Lasota: Curio was created to bring an inspired, fresh way to shop in Miami. As co-owners, we wanted to create a one-stop shop for men and women of all ages with every sense of style. The layout of the Faena Bazaar creates an elevated shopping experience that delivers ease and inspiration. From everyday basics to the perfect piece for a special occasion, Curio has an outfit solution for every occasion. Our goal is to be cohesive and all-encompassing while telling a unique story, with moments of discovery at every turn.
HL: How is Curio different from other boutiques?
Danielle Licata: Curio is different from other boutiques because it focuses more on storytelling and creating new concepts and experiences rather than just on being a shopping destination. A client could come in to shop for a swim/après swim outfit for vacation, a travel-day outfit, or even for a gown all in one single visit. The range of styles and brands in the store also covers all types of personalities — bohemian, minimalist, sexy, or flirty. The team takes these categories into account on their buying trips and aims to translate them into the targeted vignettes in the store. Discovering brands is one of [our] most prominent differentiators, and [we] aim to bring these brands visibility by giving them the space to find their voice within their vast community.
HL: How do you choose what brands to include?
DL: We travel extensively to seek and secure innovative pieces that evoke an emotion. We tap into the headspace of our clientele and source pieces we feel would complement their lifestyle while adding flare to their wardrobe. In essence, in order for Jeff and I to select the piece, it needs to jump off the rail in the showroom and scream ”Curio.”
HL: How would you define “luxury”?
JL: Luxury is quality, but it is also quality combined with scarcity — so it’s having unique, well-made things that make something luxurious. It’s either something that’s hard to find or extremely well made with the best fabrics by the best factory or artisans — that’s what luxury is to us.
HL: What do you hope for the future of Curio?
JL: Danielle and I want Curio at Faena Bazaar to be considered a global destination. Curio’s next focus is enhancing [the] virtual destination (www.shopatcurio.com) for our clientele to be able to shop wherever they are in the world. Since the launch of [the] online platform, Curio’s online presence has grown tremendously, and we are excited to see where this takes us.
HL: What fashion trends do you forecast for the luxury sector?
DL: One of the most interesting facets of fashion right now is how many different trends are occurring simultaneously. Each of these trends speaks to all genders and is varied enough to satisfy a range of aesthetics. There is a maximalist trend occurring with bright colors and print, a minimalist trend occurring with monochromatic head-to-toe dressing, and in Miami, “sexy, sexy, sexy” is in full effect and includes anything from hot, barely there dresses to silky suiting.
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