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date and location: from the end of June 2021, Paris, France
The LVMH group's renovation of the large Parisian building La Samaritaine has been completed. Entrusted to the Japanese agency Sanaa, Pritzker Prize 2010, the architectural project returns to the original inspiration of the architects Frantz Jourdain and then Henri Sauvage.
Founded in 1870 by Ernest Cognacq and Louise Jaÿ, the Samaritaine evokes the modernized Paris of Baron Haussmann and the Second Empire, an era that saw the birth of the city's first department stores. Unique, well-displayed pieces, the ability to wander the aisles and try on clothes... the principles that the Samaritaine applied to shopping would revolutionize traditional retail. Ideally located between the Louvre and Notre-Dame, the department store rose to the status of an architectural monument with its harmonious mix of Art Nouveau and Art Deco. Since closing for security reasons in 2005, La Samaritaine has revealed its new ambitions with a large-scale renovation project that adheres to an innovative environmental approach.
The new Samaritaine places diversity of all kinds, a concept dear to the store's founders, at the heart of its raison d'être: diversity of functions, architectural forms, construction methods, as well as social and intergenerational diversity. Thus, different activities will be grouped within the buildings that span two blocks between the Quai du Louvre and Rue de Rivoli. After nearly 30 months of renovation, a department store, a 5-star Cheval Blanc hotel with 72 rooms, 96 social housing units, offices and a daycare center will open their doors.
