The Sexiest Shoe Store in the World is Set to Open in The Galleria

Christian is coming! And he’s bringing his red soles with him. Today, French footwear designer Christian Louboutin struts into the Galleria with his 135th global freestanding boutique. Roosted on red carpet, behind a studded façade, signature handbags, men’s collection, small leather goods, and beauty products stand toe-to-toe with sky-high impossibly embellished pumps, stilettos, boots, and flats. But for the moment, shoes will be overshadowed by something else.

The sweet smell of nearly 25 years of success wasn’t enough for the man whose best customers pay as much as $6,000 for a pair of crystal-encrusted red-soled heels. The store’s debut in Houston coincides with Louboutin’s passion project du jour: the launch of fragrance. Following nail color, lip color, and Loubilaque (a high-shine, high-pigment lip lacquer introduced earlier this year), three fragrances, each with a personal significance to the designer, are the newest additions to Christian Louboutin Beauté.

With hints of jasmine, tuberose and Australian sandalwood, Bikini Questa Sera is inspired by deep amber-gold hues of an Egyptian sunset. Tornade Blonde infuses Bulgarian rose and gardenia with other notes to create an incandescent gold ombré mixture. And the potpourri of Bergamot, Iris Firabs and patchouli come together to create Trouble in Heaven, which is reminiscent of a perfect iris flower, and a tribute to the great French Art Nouveau glass artist Emile Gallé.

Louboutin’s goddaughter, charitably minded model and actress Elisa Sednaoui, will act as spokesmodel for the fragrances. British architect Thomas Heatherwick was tapped to design the bottle. Heatherwick and his team — typically known for large-scale projects such as the UK Pavilion at the Shanghai World Expo 2010 and the Olympic Cauldron for the London 2012 Olympic Games — spent hours poring over the quizzical objets d’art that house the nouveau juice.

The design was based on the idea of folding surfaces. “We started with the top and the base and a very simple rectangular form,” Heatherwick says. “From there, the idea was that the glass goes on a journey in between. It is almost as if the bottle turns itself inside out.”

As with Louboutin’s red soles, the packaging will be immediately recognizable. And if the fragrance itself is half as hypnotic as the bottles, our compliments to the fashion world’s newest nose on a job well done.

Christian Louboutin, Galleria, Level 1, between Miu Miu and Max Mara, 832.941.5923.