The Wonderful WIZARD of SHOPS

At the bottom of a stately stairwell in a restored hôtel particulier in Paris's trendy Marais neighborhood stands a young man in his early 20s, eagerly awaiting the arrival of his hero.

- Photograph by PAOLO ROVERSI Styling by IMRUH ASHA

He is dressed in a pair of white Salomon sneakers and an oversize hoodie, clutching a stack of business cards of his own design.

He is not waiting for the hottest rapper or some hypebeast-beloved designer. He is waiting for Adrian Joffe, the cofounder and CEO of Dover Street Market, the riotous collection of fashion stores that has found success melding artistry and commerciality.

The young man seizes his moment, approaching Joffe to pitch him on his line of tees and hoodies. “I greatly admire his work and the brands that he has in his shop,” the eager fan explains. Joffe, who is wearing his usual nondescript outfit of a black shirt and pants, warmly engages with him before politely excusing himself. “Does that happen a lot?” I ask, taken aback that the energy reserved for a tabloid celebrity has been directed at Joffe. “Yes. It’s a little strange, to be honest,” he says.

It may be strange, but it’s not entirely surprising. Dover Street Market is a convergence of the institutional and the new. Over the past 20 years, it has become one of if not the most influential retail spaces in the world. It is perhaps the only retailer where the brand of the store is as identifiable as the brands that it stocks: The store’s de facto logo, its name stacked in white Helvetica font inside a black house with a triangle roof, is an if-you-know-you-know signpost among fashion's most discerning shoppers. Dover Street's success is a feat made all the more remarkable given the state of retail. Challenged for decades by shifting consumer behavior and countless digital disruptions, traditional multibrand retail is hanging on by a thread. Now, to win the retail game, you need to innovate, and Dover Street Market is leading the charge.