In recent years, Rome’s Via del Babuino has become the coolest place to shop in the Eternal City. This may be because the narrow road is nonetheless a major thoroughfare, leading from Piazza del Popolo to the Spanish Steps. Or it may be that the reopening of the Hotel de Russie at one end of Via del Babuino has brought an influx of super hipsters to this part of the city.
However it happened, there’s little doubt that Via del Babuino is the place to you want to be if you’re in the mood for a bit of upscale shopping. And the hippest store on the street is indubitably the TAD Concept Store.
The mission of TAD appears to be that of being everything to everyone, and as such it’s really a small scale department store that carries only the finest in high design furniture, fashion, food, fragrances and flowers.
Within its sprawling but minimalist confines, TAD has a hair salon by Roberto D’Antonio and floral stand by Alessandra Rovati Vitali. There’s a café that prepares gourmet lunches and drinks and an international fragrance counter offers hard-to-find scents by Jo Malone and Miller Harris as well as local Italian perfumers. Music lovers are delighted to discover an in-house mix-ologist and good selection of lounge and house music. And while the usual big fashion houses get a bit of play at TAD, you’ll also find harder-to-come by labels like Proenza Schuler, Balenciaga and Hussein Chalaya.
TAD Concept Store. Via del Babuino 155/a. Rome. Phone: 06 36 95 131. There’s also a TAD in Milan. Via Statuto 12. Milan. Phone: 02 655 06 731.
