Louis Vuitton is not slowing down in its quest to be its target audience’s go-to luxury lifestyle brand. A little over a year after its parent company, LVMH, opened La Samaritaine, the French luxury fashion house has announced plans to convert its Paris headquarters into a massive complex that will be home to the first Louis Vuitton hotel and its largest store worldwide.
In a recent interview, the chairman and chief executive officer of Louis Vuitton, Micheal Burke, revealed the brand’s latest project, alluding to the fact that it is part of a larger plan to completely transform the first arrondissement, which is where the office is located. It is also the district where the newly-renovated La Samaritaine department store is located, as well as the Cheval Blanc hotel.
“My dream was to create a renaissance of the original commercial downtown of Paris,” Burke said. “It’s been Bernard’s vision all along and we’re halfway there. It’ll take another 10, 15 years to take it to where we think it should be.”
For now, though, the transformation has started with the launch of an experiential space on the 17th of November. Named LV Dream, the 20,000sqft pop-up features an exhibition spotlighting the Maison’s collaborations with artists as well as a gift store, and a café and chocolate shop run by Maxime Frédéric, the head pastry chef at Cheval Blanc Paris. LV Dream will open to the public on December 12 and will run for an entire year before it is retired, to most likely be replaced by the proposed LV store, the largest of its kind.
Burke is confident that this latest project would be a smashing success for a number of reasons. First off, the district where its headquarters is located has a stunning view of historical and tourist landmarks including the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre and the Notre-Dame cathedral. This is aside from the fact that it is located beside the Church of Saint Germain l’Auxerrois, another historical building.
And if these sights are not enough to draw in visitors, sharing the same area as the same La Samaritaine is bound to do it. As Burke himself confirmed of the district, “Parisians are finally rediscovering it. They’ve embraced it. There’s street music now at 11 p.m. outside here. When we took it over, this was a no man’s land, if not worse. Nobody in their right mind would walk here in the night.”
Asked if it would not be an overkill to situate the hotel so close to Le Cheval Blanc, Micheal confirmed that it would pose no problem. “[The Louis Vuitton hotel] would be its own identity, and own segment and own service — a completely different experience”
If you’re looking to get a taste of this side of Louis Vuitton, you can choose to start with the soon-to-launch LV Dream. You’ll need to pre-book on the brand’s website though if you’re planning to attend the exhibition. Access to the café, chocolate store and gift shop does not require a reservation.