Daft Punk is just the latest ambitious pop-up from Maxfield, who have also hosted ones for brands including Vetements and Fear of God. Each was put together by Peter Utz, the luxury boutique’s chief branding officer and the former right hand to Hedi Slimane at Saint Laurent. We spoke with Utz before the event about how the project with Daft Punk came together and how each pop-up pushes the next featured participant further.

Peter Utz

GQ Style: When did you first start working with Daft Punk?

Peter Utz: I was first introduced to Guy-Manuel and Thomas, and Paul Hahn and Cedric Hervet [of their production house Daft Arts] when I was the Director of the Salons de Couture at Saint Laurent. Hedi Slimane had been collaborating with the Daft Punk team on creating custom made stagewear since early on in their career. I was able to participate in their latest partnership, which was developing their full wardrobe for the Random Access Memories album launch. From there we worked on several different collaborations together. The process really stood apart from the other projects that I had worked on while at the brand, as we were all very involved in adapting each of the pieces that they wore.

What was the collaborative process with Daft Punk like on this pop-up project?

It evolved very naturally, as I have been working with their team for quite some time now and together we have had several successful collaborations. It was very exciting for me to reconnect with them in a different context and explore how we could create something unique, especially since they have such a distinct vision.

How did you select the designers to create the limited edition items?

Guy-Manuel and Thomas had a very specific idea of what they wanted to do, as I am sure you can imagine. I helped suggest designers that we work very well with at Maxfield and who I thought would nicely complement their aesthetic. They were both very receptive and from there we began making the connections and developing the products.

Though they are involved in a variety of artistic pursuits, Daft Punk are the first people who are primarily musicians who you’ve featured with a Maxfield pop-up. Do you think you’ll work with other musicians on pop-ups in the future?

Music has always been a very big part of my life and constantly influences my work. This project has been a great opportunity to involve different kinds of people with defined aesthetics who you wouldn’t necessarily expect to work together. Alison Mosshart [of the Kills] and I actually have something in the works that we hope to release sometime very soon.

How do you decide which brands to work with for the pop-ups at Maxfield?

The pop-up series was an opportunity to give our roster of up-and-coming contemporary designers the freedom to create their ideal retail exhibition space in the heart of Los Angeles. The designers were able to curate their respective spaces to display their latest collections, along with exclusive products created specifically for the event that only Maxfield carries.

As a concept store, it is important that we consistently deliver innovative means for our clients to shop and experience the boutique’s offerings. This served as our latest iteration of that model and helps drive awareness of the store. It is a great deal of fun and incredible to see how receptive our clients are to each collection.

Do the different groups doing pop-ups get competitive and try to out-do each other?

Competition is always stimulating and forces each party to bring their very best to the table. I truly hope that there is some of that between the designers, even though we are not susceptible to it. Each brand has done such a stunning job of manipulating the blank space. Jerry Lorenzo’s interpretation for Fear Of God set the bar high by recreating an ’80s rec room. On the other hand, Virgil Abloh of Off-White focused on his passion for furniture and displayed some pieces from our private collection—including works by Le Corbusie, Jean Prouve and Perriand—and mixed them with his own contemporary line. Each launch positioned itself differently from the others and that's why I think the excitement around them hasn’t seemed to wane, which is really what we wanted to achieve.