Industry News

Nearly thirty years ago, Sven Götti opened a chic boutique with Urs Niederer in an elegant, 19th-century historical building in Luzern, a magical city surrounded by lakes and mountains that co-habit in perfect harmony. Poets, princes, emperors, and kings have all flocked to Luzern, and Richard Wagner spent joyous days at Tribschen, his home on Lake Luzern, where he composed his memorable Siegfried Idyll.

Götti + Niederer Luzern

Situated in Old Town Luzern, where original half-timber buildings can be found, along with cobblestone streets and café’s, the shop is a magnet for local residents and prior to the pandemic, international visitors flocked to the boutique. When Götti started to create his acclaimed eyewear collections, Niederer has continued with the boutique to this day. From its inception, Götti + Niederer was an optical shop with revolutionary ideas, concepts, and stunning frames from innovative Swiss designers and worldwide brands.

One of the unique attractions of the shop is a first-floor space with many original features from the 1808 building construction. The First Floor is now an inventive space that has developed into an oasis of creative events  – from seasonal presentations: to wrestling professionals, to the current incarnation of musical shows. Thomas Frischknecht, Marketing Director for Götti Switzerland, and also a gifted artist, has created the latest concept for the Götti + Niederer boutique.

Thomas Frischknecht

Frischknecht commented: “The First Floor still exists and works very well. Music is the theme now, both with live events and vinyl. Unfortunately, we’ve been unable to do concerts at the moment, due to the pandemic, but we hope to start again with musical events in the fall. We always have different types of concerts, with various artists and musical styles, including jazz; singer-songwriters; DJ’s, Electro and Industrial.”

First-floor-Luzern

For Götti + Niederer, imagery, exceptional quality, craftsmanship, sleek frames, and superior service, epitomize the magic and appeal of the boutique. Current collections on The First Floor include Sunday Somewhere; Gigi Barcelona; David Beckham; and Vinylize.  As a long-time fan of The First Floor, I hope travel restrictions are relaxed in the autumn for a musical evening in the boutique!

Götti Switzerland Basel

Sven Götti Photo: by Gilles Stüssi

Sven Götti fulfilled a longstanding dream by opening a shop-in-a-shop in Basel. The brand concept within an existing space has been successful with department stores for some time, and now the idea is gaining a stronghold in optics. Götti collaborated with Basel’s leading optician – Ramstein Optik, located in the historic old town. Both Götti and Ramstein are united by a long-term passion for eyewear and premium, first-class service.

Götti + Ramstein Optik Basel

The spacious presentation for the frames was created by Götti Switzerland and developed using local Swiss partners. Designs, many of which are produced nearby, are shown on a vast display wall, with superb lighting to enhance discovery of the collections. The focal point is a huge chandelier of glass spheres with over four hundred acetate frames, suspended over a long service counter.

“We found the perfect partner with Ramstein Optik,” says Götti, “and the basis for such a close collaboration has to be a specialty store, and a team acquainted with the collection that uncompromisingly identifies with the brand.”

Götti + Ramstein Optik Basel

Götti believes that the shop-in-a-shop could be a developing trend for independent opticians. “The idea is certainly an interesting answer to the individual optician market. A good, serious shop-in-shop concept is combining the purchasing experience of a brand, displayed in their full depth, with excellent advice from real experts in terms of eyewear, sight, and lenses.”

Does Götti envision this format in other European boutiques or abroad? Sven Götti observed: “A Götti Brandstore is a friendly handshake between a long term and committed Götti eyewear seller and Götti Switzerland. Like a good friendship, it has to grow over the years, and like between friends, it has to be a win-win situation. We have good friends all over the world, and we would love to discuss this project with some of them since the result of the two existing Götti Brandstores is just fantastic.”

Original link:https://www.opticaljournal.com/euroinsights-gotti-boutiques-in-switzerland/