Even the promotional bumph is stylishly minimalist. "Rediscover Powerscourt," its pale, uncluttered type breathes. The fine, crisp card tells us that within the "beautifully refurbished building you will find quality goods . . . fashion . . . antiques . . . jewellery . . . We hope you will enjoy shopping in the Powerscourt Centre and look forward to welcoming you back again and again."

Remove that last "again" and you have the thrust of what the last 18 months of ploughed up pavements, knocked through walls and interior facelifts have been all about. And as Ms Mary Larkin, of the Centre's management company, the Clarendon Group tells it, the £2 million (€2.54 million) invested in the refurbishment has been "well worth it".

The look had become tired, she says, and customers had been lost.

Efforts to redress this see the ornate, opulent mass of chintzy detail of the old Powerscourt Townhouse Centre give way to space and light. Where once was Earl Grey tea, is now the potent aroma of Lavazza espresso.

"Our purpose was to attract a larger fashion tenant," says Ms Larkin.

For one of those attracted, British fashion chain French Connection, the purpose will be to entice "the cosmopolitan, independent, European with a healthy disposable income" into the centre. Briefly, the past year and half's work, overseen by James Toomey Architects, has resulted in a much opened-up space at the former South William Street town house of the late Lord Powerscourt. At the Clarendon Street entrance the fruit and veg and the flowers stalls are gone and the lobby area widened; the stalls around the central courtyard restaurant have been moved away to a market area on the first floor giving an unobstructed stroll-way; uplights replace the old lanterns and at the main door on South William Street, the pavement has been widened making for a less cramped entrance.

French Connection had been looking for a location in Ireland for six years, according to Dublin branch assistant manager, Mr Andrew O'Donoghue. "We initially wanted Grafton Street," he says, "but couldn't get a unit big enough." The Powerscourt premises is 7,500 sq ft, he says. It is white, steel, glass and light with plenty of room to move between simply displayed clothes. Likewise Karen Millen, the British women's design-label, opts for the unfussy, clean white basis to its displays of what the assistant manager, Ms Marie Corcoran calls "directional clothing aimed at the independent woman".

"Visual merchandising," says Mr O'Donoghue, "is a huge priority. The stock has to look right . . . The lighting is strong yet calming. And the whole feel is relaxed, sophisticated, a lot of space, time to linger - unhurried."

Mr Toomey believes this is "absolutely" the way retail design is going.

He points to other outlets embracing this spacious, sharp-lined, smooth-finished approach to their interior design, mentioning the Bailey bar on Duke Street, the Expresso Bar on Shelbourne Road, the Fitzwilliam Hotel in St Stephen's Green and the US shoe shop now opened on Grafton Street, Nine West, all in Dublin.

The new courtyard restaurant, the Centre's epicentre, appropriately exemplifies this interior tailoring. Formerly the Mary Rose restaurant, the feel of the new Mimo "is a cross between Japanese and Italian", says designer Mr Brian MacDonald.

"It's plush without the clutter. The bar here is solid walnut. Feel that. You can tell its simple, quality - very tactile design. I think it's a reaction to the `olde worlde' look of the mid-1990s." Low tables have lower couchlike chairs upholstered in burgundy velvet with rich, dark wooden arms; the tables are set simply with a single lily and smooth functional cutlery; and an enormous overhead lighting sculpture has been commissioned "to create a barrier between the restaurant and the roof".

The lighting in the restaurant, says Mr MacDonald, will change with the seasons.

Though already open, the Centre will be officially presented to the cosmopolitan customer with time to linger, at the beginning of May. It will be about more than just space for merchandise, says Mr Toomey. "The discerning public demands a lot more. There is a consumer there now that wasn't there 10 years ago - the design conscious, quality conscious, who is prepared to pay for the whole look, and that goes for the shop itself," he says. "It is a whole experience - the feel of the environment, how you see yourself. The effort put into that environment," he says, "is taken by the customer as indicative of how the retailer regards their customer".

Taking the Powerscourt managers at their word, they regard an investment of £2 million in the young European with a healthy disposable income, as "well worth it".