Cartier reopens the historic Rue de la Paix Flagship
What: The French jeweler's Parisian flagship reopens after a two-year renovation that sees the addition of an interior courtyard and a private space modeled after a Parisian apartment.
Why is it important: The store has been entirely rethought, it is a global trip in time and space, respecting all periods of time without being anchored in any; furthering cementing the idea of layers rather than a single signature.
The building, totaling 32,300 square feet spread over six levels, includes 10 salons and myriad comfortable nooks and plush crannies for customers to discover the jeweler's offering more than the 15,000 square feet dedicated to retail.
The journey into the newly renovated store starts from the outside with a kiosk for initial orientation before visitors are handed over to a team of concierges that direct them across the ground floor, home to watches, leather goods and other accessories.
On a wood panel in one of the ground floor salons, the words of French artist and writer Jean Cocteau, describing the jeweler. Then in another it's the rare books and archives of Louis Cartier that nod to the man who built the house's reputed style.
The new main staircase leads to the first floor and the former office of Jeanne Toussaint, now turned into an eponymous salon overlooking the Rue de la Paix.
High jewelry takes pride of place on the second floor, with salons named and decorated according to influences underpinning the Cartier style, from India to flora.
The third and fourth floors and a segment of the fifth dedicated to the archives have been designed by Larène Barbier Tardrew and Romain Jourdan, of the Studioparisien agency. Customer service takes place on the third floor in a succession of small salons, while a customization bar offers options like engraving.
One floor higher are the high jewelry atelier and its 18 work benches, bathed in natural light both from the interior skylight and the street outside.
The building holds the house archives as well as the Residence, a private space imagined as Cartier's take on a Parisian apartment, complete with a dining room, large kitchen and winter garden.
Cartier reopens the historic Rue de la Paix Flagship
Cartier reopens the historic Rue de la Paix Flagship ARTICLE