Spanish porcelain brand Lladró expands its footprint in Mumbai

Pooja Patel

The iconic Spanish brand Lladró, known for its impeccable handmade porcelain art, opened a flagship store in Mumbai, on February 28. This newly opened store in Palladium Mall houses handcrafted sculptures, lighting accessories, jewellery, home décor and figurines. The brand entered the Indian market in 2006 and has eight stores across the country today.

The Palladium Mall store has been designed by renowned Puerto Rican architect Héctor Ruíz Velázquez in which he perfectly captures the balance between the brand’s historic origins and its contemporary designs. The talented designer has used materials that are the components of porcelain, like kaolin, feldspar and quartz clubbed with white Calacatta marble floor.

The delicate-looking contemporary porcelain pieces at the store are stylish, and many are part of a new collection. Few of the new ones include the Guest by Ricardo Cavolo (imagery based on legends and fantasy nature); Fauna (new collection of insects that has two types of beetles, rhinoceros and the Hercules, and a dragonfly); Ice Cream candles and diffusers (made in white matte porcelain and inspired by the wavy rhythms of a smooth creamy ice cream, which has sweet notes of vanilla and patchouli); and the Dog & Candy collection (French bulldog, chihuahua and Jack Russell playing with macarons, candies and licorice).

“Among the sculptures category, there’s high porcelain, neo porcelain and classic looks. This store also has lights, scents and jewellery,” says Nikhil Lamba, CEO, Lladró India, as he points out at the limited edition Spanish horse, which has some interesting intricate details. The contemporary-looking panthers are inspired by origami art and elephants, rhinoceros, butterfly, rabbit and parrot that are part of the Boldblue collection.

At the centre of the store hangs the elegant Belle de Nuit Chandeliers with 40 and 24 lights and Mademoiselle Round Canopy with three lights, which combines opaque and translucent porcelain. The head-turner is their brand new jewellery collection—necklace in porcelain and gold-plated sterling silver inspired by tropical birds; pendants inspired by the Heliconia flower that are hand-painted on porcelain in white gloss with gold lustre; bracelets in porcelain and gold-plated sterling silver and more.

“The jewellery collection is receiving a great response for its simplicity and newness of the designs,” says Lamba. He adds that apart from the jewellery, the Indian sculptures by the brand are extremely popular. The Lord Balaji and the Gita Saar sculptures have been selling like hotcakes!

“One look at the Balaji sculpture and a consumer surely ends up buying it,” says Lamba. It’s a combination of matt and glossy porcelain with gold, platinum and metallic tones, with 1,866 flowers that form various garlands that the diety wears.

The Gita Saar sculpture in matte and glazed porcelain and has stunning intricate details on the clothes, chariot and white horses. The handmade floral decoration on Lord Krishna’s idol and the golden hue on the jewellery in the sculpture is worth noticing.