Diggin' Daslu

BRAZIL'S HOTTEST SHOP GETS THE PARTY STARTED

In Sao Paulo, if you're looking for a pair of Manolo Blahniks, a penthouse apartment, a beach cover-up for Rio, a Chanel suit, an espresso, a helicopter, or a good time, you need only go to one place: Daslu, the luxury emporium owned by 47-year-old native business icon Eliana Tranchesi. South America's hottest store also functions as a retail clubhouse for Brazil's best-dressed list.

Since 1958, Daslu has operated out of a series of connected, converted homes with their own distinct charms, in the swish Jardins district. Its famous women-only floor policy bids adeus to inhibition as shoppers treat the hallways like giant, communal dressing rooms.

Daughters of diplomats and their privileged friends, all with curtains of shiny brown hair and spike heels, work at the store. They chat in Portuguese over walkie-talkies to other "Dasluzettes" as they navigate winding corridors that connect separate boutiques for the likes of Chanel, Valentino, Dolce & Gabbana, and the store's signature lower-priced line, which includes some renowned Brazilian jeans.

This May, the whole operation will move to a 200,000-square-foot, four-floor complex next to the Microsoft tower in a newer business district. The building will house, among other things, the first-ever Dr. Perricone spa, a men's store, a children's store, a home store, a cafe, and a sushi bar—all under the same roof, which gives the famously social Tranchesi, her best friend and trusted buyer, Donata Meirelles, and the other Dasluzettes another reason to celebrate.

"We're not just having one party to open the store," says Tranchesi—who has the charm and demeanor of a grown-up party girl-calling from the Paris haute couture shows, which she and Meirelles attend every year. "We're having a whole weekend of parties. You should come, darling. It will really be wonderful."

CHRISTINE LENNON