Did you know that Paul Smith has over 200 stores in Japan? Which means that - over there - shopping at the Smithy is a bit like shopping at Next here?

How mad is that? It's safe to say though, that Smith, with his well documented love of shop-keeping (as opposed to just designing), reserves the best for the country of his birth.

Today sees the opening in Mayfair of a Paul Smith store dedicated to selling furniture and "things". On Albemarle Street, in a plumb location between Old Bond Street and Dover Street, the store will sell a variety of "things" whose only common characteristic is that they are 'unique'.

The Smithy has always sold a selection of stuff accrued on his travels, but this is the first store completely dedicated to his eclectic but peculiarly defined aesthetic: think mismatching, unexpected combinations, and blends of high and low-tech sitting cheekily together.

Furniture, art, and objects will be either one-offs or have been given his signature 'twist': antiques covered in garish new upholstery for example. Essentially, this is a very carefully curated junk shop, and full power to the man for dreaming it up.