Following in the footsteps of competitors like Yves Saint Laurent and Gucci, Prada will launch an online boutique for US customers.

The store is set to open this Thursday, July 1, debuting just as the privately-owned company revealed that it’s thinking about scheduling an initial public offering in 2012.

(Some background: This is probably the seventh or eighth time over the last 15 years that Prada has toyed with selling shares on the Milan Stock Market, so it’s most certainly not a definite thing.)

Much like the rest of Prada’s online efforts, the site is well-designed, user-friendly, and perfectly on-brand. You can’t buy clothes, but you can buy leather goods and eye wear, which are the house’s bread and butter categories.

Next up in the company’s online world? Japan will get its very own Prada E-store.