There’s always something new to explore in Goa. In winter particularly, which is peak season, the beach state is rife with a variety of exciting stores and restaurants that can fill a visitor’s itinerary. The latest addition to this list is Escape, the multi-functional, multi-brand boutique by fashion designer Ritu Beri.
Housed in an entirely renovated 200-year-old Portuguese villa, the expansive store is a testament to the designer’s signature, gilded ‘Punjabi Rock and Roll’ aesthetic (incidentally, the title of her Delhi Couture Week 2014 collection). Cue the mashup of kitschy painted mannequins and pop art-printed upholstery with ornate chandeliers and baroque-inspired flourishes, black-and-white tiled floors covered with colourful kilims and the multiplicity of chandeliers. The exteriors of the villa are painted in Beri's preferred palette of traffic-stopping red and white.
The designer has been a prolific name in the fashion industry—she started her eponymous label more than 30 years ago, had her first fashion show in Paris way back in 1999, and at one time, was the creative director of the French fashion house Jean-Louis Scherrer. But this is the first time that visitors will get the chance to see her work in interior design, something that’s usually only reserved for private clients. “The space was offered to us in January 2024,” she recalls. “I wasn’t looking to start something, but when we walked into this space, it felt like it had been waiting for us, calling out for something creative and unforgettable.”
The store houses Beri’s own resort wear designs—think kaftans, tiered dresses, shrunken, embroidered jackets) and accessories by brands like 5 Elements for footwear and Jasbir Gill for bags. It also has an extensive gifting curation of pop art prints, fragrances, shawls, and home décor—keepsakes for when you return home after your Goa holiday. But what makes Escape a true destination is the addition of a garden café that overlooks lush paddy fields, the perfect setting to enjoy a cocktail and bar bites after a shopping spree. Next year, Beri is also going to curate a line-up of performances that will take place at the mini amphitheatre that holds about 50 to 60 people. “I wanted a space where art, fashion, music, and culture collided, where you could find inspiration at every turn. And I realised Goa didn’t have a destination like this—a place where you could shop, vibe, and connect with a community of like-minded creators.”
Escape is at 1167, Maina Socorro, Porvorim, Bardez, Goa 0403501
