Balenciaga has joined the retail fray in Austin.

On Wednesday, the luxury house opened its first freestanding store in the city’s mixed-use metropolitan center, The Domain.

The 6,137-square-foot space offers men’s and women’s ready-to-wear, shoes, bags, accessories, eyewear and jewelry.

Like the last several stores the company has opened, the Austin unit features the brand’s experiential Raw Architecture concept, which is intended to be reminiscent of construction sites and abandoned spaces. It is built using existing elements, resulting in fewer raw materials, a move that keeps with Balenciaga’s commitment to sustainability.

But in a nod to its location, the store’s street-corner facade, composed of glass, porcelain and quartz, is intended to speak to its Southwestern home. Inside, the sand and stone that is found in the Austin area is referenced in the gray tones that mark the surfaces in the store. Brushed slab and poured concrete are embedded with carpet in places, while intentionally left bare in others. Walls and partitions are covered in patinated concrete panels, hot rolled steel showing flame licks, or smoked glass.

An open ceiling shows ceiling grids, lighting systems, and other technical fixtures overhead while aged steel tables and hanging pipe racks are used to simulate an industrial space.

There are also high-definition screens, focused lighting, leather seating and a street-facing lightbox.

Last week, Balenciaga opened a 10,000-square-foot store in Shanghai’s HKRI Taikoo Hui shopping mall, its largest in China, where it operates 54 stores.

In the U.S., the company opened a U.S. flagship on Greene Street in SoHo in early September.

In Austin, Balenciaga joins Dior, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Saint Laurent, Versace, The Webster and Tiffany in the Domain.

On this week’s Sports Office, Brian Knight, the host of “Clemson Football Live” joined the show. Knight gave an insider perspective into all things Clemson football and what Longhorns fans most need to know before kickoff.

Hundreds of Austin-area workers are being laid off as the Texas Department of Transportation moves its TxTag toll billing and customer service operations to the Harris County Toll Road Authority. 

TTEC Government Solutions, a tech services and call center based in Colorado, announced in a recent notice to the Texas Workforce Commission that it will be laying off 650 workers from two of its Austin offices in February. TTEC confirmed to the Statesman Tuesday evening that the layoffs are a direct result of TxDOT’s decision to transfer operations to the Harris County Toll Road Authority. 

TxTag was overseen by the transportation department, while the billing and customer service operations were managed by TTEC Government Solutions. TxDOT initially contracted with Faneuil in 2019; the company was later acquired by TTEC, which then assumed the contract. Since 2019, TxDOT has paid these companies over $230 million, according to a report by KXAN Austin in October.

In October, the Texas Transportation Commission approved an agreement to transfer all TxTag processing, billing, and customer service to the Harris County Toll Road Authority. According to commission presentation materials from October, this move is expected to make operations more cost-effective, reducing the cost to process a toll transaction from 30 cents to 15 or 16 cents.

According to the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) letter, affected employees will receive either 60 days of wages and benefits in lieu of notice, 60 days’ notice, or a combination of both.

“Today, I regret to inform you that in response to their changing business needs, the TxDOT client program you support has made the decision to sunset their operations with TTEC. …,” TTEC wrote in an email to affected employees. “Our goal is to transition our affected employees to one of our existing and growing programs wherever possible. The payrate and hours for these positions may differ from your current role. We’re committed to communicating with you openly and honestly during this transition period and will continue to keep you informed with additional details about available opportunities so you can make educated and informed decisions about your career and your future.”

According to the company’s third quarter financial results, TTEC reported a loss of $21.1 million in its third quarter and a loss of 44 cents per share, falling short of Wall Street expectations. In the report, the company said it expected full-year earnings to be between 64 cents to 83 cents per share and a revenue range of $2.21 billion to $2.26 billion. TTEC laid off 170 workers in its Colorado offices in 2019. 

“We have been working diligently to find other employment opportunities for them within the company and with TxDOT’s new tolling partner, where possible,” TTEC wrote in a statement to the Statesman on Tuesday. “When the project eventually ends in February, we hope to be able to have new assignments for many, if not all employees. We value our employees’ contributions and are committed to offering support during this time.”