On Wednesday, Dior unveiled its latest pop-up experience, a multi-room installation called Fort Sauvage located in central London and open to the public from Sept. 25 to Sept. 28.
An enormous Dior-branded midnight blue box popped up on the 18th century quadrangle of arts venue Somerset House to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Sauvage, the brand’s flagship men’s fragrance franchise and the number one best-selling men’s fragrance in the world, according to Circana data shared by Dior.
It’s also the latest effort to expand Dior’s authority in male beauty. The pop-up will have barbers on-site to tend to the beards and hairlines of invited influencers and guests who booked a free 30 minute session during public admission. All slots were filled by the time the pop-up opened.
The pop-up “brings more awareness to the grooming side of things,” said Vince Garcia, a Dior ambassador and US-based barber whose regular clients include athletes like Kevin Durant and Travis Kelce. Since he was signed in 2023, he has worked on quick-sprint activations, like a grooming suite at the 2023 Formula One race in Las Vegas, and tended to VIP clients like Durant with Sauvage in advance of this year’s NBA All-Star Game.
“A lot of my clients didn’t know Dior had grooming and beard care and all that stuff,” said Garcia.
Inside The Pop-Up
Fort Sauvage is a rendering of Sauvage’s “raw and cinematic” world, according to a press release. Its centrepiece is The Wild Theatre, a room with four benches screening an endless loop of the latest Sauvage campaign featuring the actor Johnny Depp, who has been the face of the fragrance since its inception in 2015.
In the nearby Fragrance Bar, where guests can enjoy mocktails inspired by Sauvage’s key notes, male influencers hunched around a roulette table. Branded dice and slot machines nearby offered chances to receive Sauvage samples.
The General Store, meanwhile, is lined with shelves featuring not only Sauvage’s fragrances and its skincare range, launched in 2024, but core women’s scents Miss Dior and J’Adore available for purchase.
The pop-up is an attempt for the LVMH-owned brand’s intent to capture more male shoppers. Luxury brands have repeatedly tried to crack the grooming market, from Tom Ford to Chanel, with underwhelming results. Perhaps they were ahead of their time, as men’s use of skincare has surged in recent years: In the US, 31 percent of men used facial skincare in 2022, according to Mintel; by 2024, that percentage jumped to over 50.
Dior’s strategy will tap into the worlds of men’s grooming and sports through its ambassadorships with talent like Garcia, who has become a fan of the skincare for his sensitive skin.
“I use these products every day,” Garcia said, a fact he’s happy to pass on to his clients.
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