Maria Tag

MILAN — Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella is heading to the Upper East Side of Manhattan. The historic Florentine apothecary is to open a boutique at The Pierre hotel next week, marking its fifth store within the U.S. The unit might be the brand’s first store out there to embrace the design concept evoking the atmosphere of the unique shop in Florence’s Via della Scala. Doubling as a museum, the seminal store epitomizes a novel customer experience with its Renaissance frescoed ceilings, bronzed angels and aromas lingering within the air from potpourri made with local herbs. While 14th-century frescoes by Giotto’s workshop are usually not that easy to copy, the brand new 500-square-foot unit also features dark wooden furniture, wealthy marble counters...