FRANCE. LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton and DFS are on track for a second-quarter 2020 reopening of the iconic La Samaritaine department store in central Paris. As reported, the ambitious €750 million (US$817.9 million) renovation of the 70,000sq m historic building will include the introduction of a T Galleria by DFS alongside a 76-room hotel, office space for LVMH, apartments and a nursery.
The reopening was originally slated for April 2020 but had to be deferred due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The T Galleria by DFS (Samaritaine Paris Pont-Neuf) is referenced in a video released by DFS today to celebrate another extraordinary project that combines history, culture and commerce – T Galleria by DFS, Brisbane at Queen’s Wharf Brisbane, a landmark development on the Brisbane River which will be opened in phases from late 2022.
[Discover the ‘Birth of an icon’ in this video that affirms DFS’ luxury credentials worldwide and offers a tantalising preview of the magnificent environment now taking shape in Brisbane. The film also highlights DFS’ commitment to history and culture and references La Samaritaine.]
La Samaritaine, a Parisian institution since its founding in 1870 by Ernest Cognacq and Marie-Louise Jaÿ (see panel below), was acquired by LVMH in 2001. Four years later the building was closed for safety reasons, sparking more than a decade of controversy over its proposed design and redevelopment. With all the legal and regulatory challenges long overcome, the scene is set for what LVMH describes as La Samaritaine’s “renaissance” when it opens in Q2.
The new-look La Samaritaine embraces a cluster of old and new buildings spread over two blocks between the Quai du Louvre and the Rue de Rivoli, adjacent to the Seine river that flows like a bloodline through Paris. Besides the DFS store, the development will include a 5-star, 72-room Cheval Blanc hotel; 96 social housing units; offices and a crèche.
DFS, the company jointly held by LVMH and Robert Miller (the company’s Co-Founder) will offer what it describes as “exceptional” collections from Parisian, French and international brands and artisans. The duty and tax paid range will include beauty and fragrances, fashion and accessories (including an extensive shoes offer), watches and jewellery, and food, wines and spirits. Eight restaurants, bars and cafes will complete the consumer experience.
Glory restored On 21 March 1870 Ernest Cognacq and Marie-Louise Jaÿ opened a “grand magasin de nouveautés ‘ (new fashion store) in a nondescript 48sq m area of the Café de la Samaritaine on the corner of Rue du Pont-Neuf and Rue de la Monnaie. The shop was named after the pump used to supply water to the nearby Louvre from 1608 to 1813. La Samaritaine pump was embossed with a sculpture of Samaritaine – a woman from Samaria in Palestine reputed to have given water to Jesus on his way to the crucifixion. Over subsequent decades Ernest Cognacq took over the original building and four more adjacent sites, creating some 80,000sq m of retail space. In 1905 he commissioned the architect Frantz Jourdain to construct a new building at the corner of Rue du Pont-Neuf and Rue de la Monnaie, which was completed in 1910. Commonly known as the Jourdain Building, it is considered a magnificent example of Art Nouveau. The architect Francis Gourdin built a second store between 1904 and 1907. This was enlarged by Henri Sauvage between 1922 and 1928, who also designed a magnificent Art Deco façade, framed with woodwork painted in bronze and adorned with balconies and canopies. All of those glories, first faded and then hidden, will soon be restored and open to the public gaze |
