DFS Group says it will open its second European downtown store at the historic La Samaritaine in central Paris.

The news, revealed to TRBusiness and a select group of travel retail’s media at an exclusive event in Paris, ends years of speculation that the travel retailer would enter the French capital after its luxury good’s parent company LVMH purchased the building in 2001.

The ‘reimagined’ La Samaritaine will feature 20,000sq m of commercial space, as DFS pledges an ‘exceptional selection’ of Parisian, French and international brands spanning beauty, fashion & accessories, watches & jewellery, wines & spirits and F&B.

“The idea to create another member of the collection of exceptional destinations and stores DFS has built over the last few years in the city of lights is incredible,” Philippe Schaus, DFS Group Chairman and CEO told TRBusiness.

“It will have a product offer different in many aspects from what we have in other stores and will be one of the major hallmarks of modern design in the centre of Paris.”

Interior fit-outs of the commercial zones are scheduled to begin next February, with the department store set to open in Q4 2019.

SEVEN-FLOOR LAYOUT

Spread over seven floors, including ground and basement levels, the new shell features three distinctive buildings named after the building’s architects – Henri Sauvage (overlooking the Seine), Frantz Jourdain and Japanese agency Sanaa (facing Rue de Rivoli).

While still under construction, a tour of the facility gave TRBusiness essential insight into La Samaritaine’s future layout and crucially, how it expects to handle the dense footfall expected from high-trafficked areas such as Rue de Rivoli when the renovations complete.

FULL CATEGORY MIX

While the exact locations of the category spaces are still being finalised, it is expected that P&C will occupy basement level, with fashion & accessories spread over the ground floor.

The layout’s elegant proportions include a series of light wells and central atrium zones positioned in the centre of the three buildings, with ornate mosaic-style ceramic and glass panel facades.

These in turn are supported by  greenhouse canopies and historical frescos in certain areas.

The department store’s reimagined edifices are part of a mammoth 70,000sq m facility, which includes a 71-room Cheval Blanc Palace hotel, 96 social housing units, mixed office space and a children’s creche.

While an exact brand for the new location is being finalised, Schaus makes clear that the name ‘La Samaritaine’ will be entirely preserved.

REVERED LOCATION

Originally opened in 1870, the iconic La Samaritaine is situated conveniently between a series of arresting Parisian landmarks, including Notre Dame and the Louvre.

It overlooks the city’s oldest bridge, Pont Neuf, which straddles the river Seine on one end, and the famed commercial district Rue de Rivoli on the other.

Bold Art Noveau and Art Deco facades are being sensitively restored by leading architects under the guidance of DFS Group to preserve the building’s raison d’etre of a diverse and exciting hub of retail and cultural activity.

“The whole district is renovating at the same time and in a couple of years it will have a very different taste of what it used to be in the last 10 years,” commented DFS Group Region President Europe & Middle East Eleonore de Boysson.

Acquired by LVMH in 2001, La Samaritaine was closed in 2005 due to safety reasons after it failed to meet new fire regulations.

Construction permit litigation in 2014 temporarily halted the restoration following opposition from local historians to a ruling by the Administrative Court of Paris that authorised the restoration.

Final approval of the building permit was granted by the Conseil d’Etat in 2015, paving the way for the renovations to continue.

As reported, TRBusiness – alongside other international media outlets –had previously anticipated a potential European debut for DFS at La Samaritaine, with the retailer initially acting as a travel retail consultant to LVMH.

However, all predictions of a debut Europe move to the French capital were dashed when DFS announced it was opening its first regional downtown store at the Fondaco dei Tedeschi on Venice’s Grand Canal, as it pressed ahead with its ambitions despite the legal uncertainty in 2014.

Schaus did not directly respond to TRBusiness’ question on whether DFS had intended the La Samaritaine building to be its European debut, but said: “We have been looking at the project for a long time and played with it in terms of architectural and merchandising approaches and we have only finalised our vision of what DFS can do with the building in the last two to three months. That’s what ultimately triggered the project.”

TOURIST NUMBERS RECOVERING

The devastating fallout from the attacks on the French capital in November 2015 left Paris and France open to a decline in its tourist traffic, but new figures suggest a recovery is in full swing – a sign that DFS will certainly welcome.

According to figures from the Paris Convention and Visitors Bureau, Greater Paris (which includes Paris, Hauts-de-Seine, Seine-Saint-Denis and Val-de-Marne) registered 36.5m tourists in 2016, including 14.5m hotel arrivals.

At the beginning of this year, figures have grown significantly, with hotel arrivals up by 20.1% in January year-on-year – a 10-year record.

International air arrivals in Paris for the first quarter were also up by 11.1%, data from ForwardKeys on behalf of the Paris Convention and Visitors Bureau shows, with significant gains among markets including Japan (+77%), Brazil (+30.9%), the US (+24.6%) and Russia (+69.4%).

“These indicators show a distinct reversal in the situation in tourism in Paris, which all tourism trade professionals are delighted about,” said Pierre Schapira, Chairman of the Paris Convention and Visitors Bureau, last month.

For further insight and analysis on DFS Group’s latest European move including interviews with Chairman and CEO Philippe Schaus and Group Region President Europe & Middle East Eleonore de Boysson, watch out for the September print issue of TRBusiness.