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Cartier reopens Paris flagship store in place Vendôme
On Friday March 15, luxury jeweller Cartier unveiled its new-look flagship store at 23 place Vendôme, Paris, having recently made over its stores in Zurich and Stockholm. The 266-square-metre premises have been wholly redesigned, after renovation work lasting six and a half months, introducing a new interiors concept by architect Laura Gonzalez.
The jewellery label owned by the Richemont group is working on revamping its monobrand stores in a way that reflects more closely Cartier's brand identity, while also customising the boutiques depending on their location. The Stockholm store features Scandinavian-style interiors, the Zurich one has the romantic feel of a Swiss chalet, while the place Vendôme store, known as ‘23’, looks like a Parisian flat, “a rare, delicately feminine showcase.”
Cartier first set up shop in this historic building with an 18th century hewn-stone façade in 1975. The store will now also host cultural events and exhibitions and, from April 10 to 14, it will present exclusively and ahead of other Cartier stores the new ‘Clash de Cartier’ jewellery collection.
“At 23 Vendôme, you will be welcomed in Cartier’s own home. It is a manageable-size store, devised like a showcase, with an exclusive feel. It's also highly feminine: soft, cocooning, yet with a distinctive personality. Cartier’s signature panther design, featured as a bas-relief motif in the store’s décor, embodies this dual aspect,” said Gonzalez in a press release.
The store's entrance feels like a lobby, with bookshelves, comfortable seating and a small desk. The central staircase isn’t ostentatious, and is illuminated through a play of mirrors, reflecting a chandelier. An enfilade of rooms follows, furnished like a classic Parisian apartment with damask fabrics, as in some of the adjoining palaces, sculpted oak wood panelling and crescent-shaped sofas. The store itself is furnished in light-coloured wood and warm, luminous hues, as Gonzalez worked with contrasting materials, both untreated and rare.
The atmosphere reflects the history and mood of the location, the elegance and prestige of place Vendôme in the heart of Paris. As Cartier did for the other 26 stores it has renovated, the jewellery brand resorted to recognised craftsmen to create bespoke elements of furniture and interior decoration. The place Vendôme store features for example two lacquered wood panels by Atelier Midavaine, an engraved glass pane by Bernard Pictet and a bas-relief in wood and resin by master sculptor Étienne Rayssac.
Cartier operates 272 stores worldwide, of which 13 are in France, eight of them in Paris. Last December, the label launched a new leather handbag model, the ‘Guirlande’, available in three sizes, having launched the ‘Marcello’ model in 2007 and ‘C de Cartier’ in 2015.
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