Ariana Debose Celebrates Omega's New Atlanta Boutique With Southern Charm

When we think of luxury, we think diamonds, champagne, exclusivity. And while the first two remain steadfast, Omega’s new Atlanta boutique is redefining luxury with an air of invitation. Already breaking from the New York/Los Angeles norm, the redesigned space, which has already been implemented in markets around the world, comes complete with soothing cream and champagne interiors and a stocked bar, calls shoppers in and invites them to stay. 

“When you hear the word boutique, you know you're coming for an experience,” explains Omega brand ambassador Ariana DeBose, who cut the ribbon on the reconceptualized store. “I've never gone into a boutique that I don't have a memory from. And I think this new design, especially, just invites an experience. And choosing one of these pieces is already an experience because they're beautiful, but they have value and weight and they mean something. I just think it's all working together in a beautiful way.”

On the day of the boutique’s reopening, L’OFFICIEL spoke with DeBose about her connection to Omega and the city of Atlanta, as well as how she approaches life with grace.

L'OFFICIEL: What does it mean for you to be an Omega ambassador?

ARIANA DeBOSE: I love that question. So Omega found me at a time when, you know, I was on this extraordinary award season ride. Now, growing up, I remember my grandmother, my great-grandmother, my nanny, n-a-n-n-y. There's your great-grandmother, but it's like, Nanny. But she always had a timepiece that she wore every day and it was something she spent her hard-earned money on. It was just something that became so much a part of her identity. So for me, when I think of a timepiece, I think of her. And when Omega came and I got to meet Gio and the team, I was like, This feels right, and, This is a moment in my life that I want to mark. You mark time so that you remember it. I'm so proud of our collaboration, our partnership, because it's done nothing but grow. Every time I have a beautiful moment in my career, Omega is always with me, so I look at my ambassadorship as an opportunity to celebrate special moments with a timepiece that marks the moment that is equal to the moment. It's about grace, it's about reveling in the moment that you're in, and if you can remember what you're wearing. That's important to me.

L'O: Do you have a connection to Atlanta? I know you’re from North Carolina.

AD: You know, I was here 10 years ago. You could say it's where I started my career. So my first job, The first real big gig was Bring It On: The Musical and it did its out of town tryout. I know. It's very silly. There was an out of town tryout at the Alliance Theater here in Atlanta and I spent four, it was like four to six months of my life here doing the show. And then after that my career sort of started becoming. I won't say that it took off because a lot of people would say, West Side story was when my career took off. [But] it’s like the journey began here in a great way.

L'O: Looking at sort of all the roles you've done, West Side Story is a huge film, then in the things you have coming up, there's a Marvel film. Those are large scale projects. Is that how you sort of approach them, trying to stay in the moment?

AD: Very much so. I think what makes me good at what I do, whatever it is that I’m doing, because I do many things.

L'O: Being fabulous and winning awards.

AD: Trying, trying to be fabulous. I think my ability to stay present from moment to moment is a superpower and I’m at my best when I’m in the moment. So I think that’s a fair assessment. That is how I approach my work in my life. I think people should approach life that way, be in the moment.

L'O: You really do have a lot coming down the pipeline, including coming up very soon. The Marvel movie, Kraven The Hunter. What can you tell me about your character?

AD: Absolutely nothing. You know Sony, Marvel—they love to keep a lid on things, but what I can tell you was we had a fascinating and wonderful experience making the movie. I have such an admiration for Aaron Taylor Johnson and what he has brought to that character. And I'm very excited to see for people, for our audiences to see this take on these characters. And I think what JC Chandor, our director has done is root something in reality, which is very cool. And I mean, we are Marvel characters, but there's a certain little taste of reality that I find really cool about the project.