Rive droite and its prestigious locations

 

The Rive Droite:

1)What I learned about the Rive Droite, and luxury houses:   

Reputed to be more sophisticated and conservative, it is home to some great monuments such as the Hôtel de la Marine, the Hôtel de Ville, the Palais de l'Élysée, the Louvre, the Place de la Concorde, Paris chic and the famous Faubourg Saint-Honoré, avenue Montaigne or Place Vendôme.

La Samaritaine: flagship location in the Rive Droite :

La Samaritaine is part of the same group as Le Bon Marché. It took 7 years of work to build this department stores', which contains outlets for luxury brands, a restaurant/bar, a spa and even a hotel. The staircases were built by Eiffel. The principle behind the building is that the higher you go up the floors, the more upmarket the products offered by the luxury houses become.

Frantz Jourdain wanted to bring the building up to date with the times, and worked in particular with a steel framework, which he combined with a vast glass roof to let in the light. Influenced by Art Nouveau, he decorated the façade with mosaic signs and covered it with friezes depicting floral motifs in shades of yellow and green.  In 1926, the architect called on his friend Henri Sauvage, who brought the Art Deco spirit to this Parisian store.

La Samaritaine contains a palace, Le Cheval Blanc, which was created by LVMH, as all the group's palaces are called. They are palaces, not luxury hotels, because they all have a history, which is important to Bernard Arnaud because he won't buy a luxury house if it doesn't have a history. In this palace, there are 2.6 employees per room. There are 12 luxury hotels in Paris, the smallest of which is called La Réserve.

In its shop, La Samaritaine represents niche brands such as Trudon: a house of luxury candles scented with a wax of exceptional quality that lasts over time. It also represents Henessy, Prada, Alexander Mcqueen, Marni, Dior, Balenciaga, Gucci, etc.

These luxury houses are owned by major groups: 

-LVMH, with its 70 brands - including Louis Vuitton, Givenchy, Tiffany and Co, Christian Dior, Fendi and Celine - remains the undisputed world leader in luxury goods. This group is owned by Bernard Arnaud 

- Kering , the world's second-largest luxury goods group after LVMH in terms of sales. Kering owns a portfolio of luxury brands including Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent, Bottega Veneta, Balenciaga and Alexander McQueen. The group is owned by François Pinault.

-Richemont, is now the world's 3ᵉ largest luxury group by sales, owning Cartier, Piaget, Van Cleef and Arpels, Chloé, etc... . The group is owned by a father and son of Swiss origin: Anton Rupert and Johann Rupert.

-Chanel: one of the few remaining independent groups in the luxury sector, is owned by the Wertheimer brothers.

-Hermès: Family business, 6 generations of craftsmen. It is an independent group, but Bernard Arnaud has made his group the main individual shareholder in Hermès, apart from the heirs of the founder's family, who still share around 70% of the capital. 

Hermès' direct competitor is Loro Piana, which offers leather goods and cashmere of a higher quality than Hermès.

The Rive Droite also includes Avenue Montaigne:

Luxury houses can open two boutiques in the same street to expand their clientele, as the luxury house Fendi has done. One of the boutiques sells leather goods, while the other, opposite, sells a whole range of haute couture pieces. 

Competing houses are generally opposite on Avenue Montaigne, such as Yves Saint Laurent for Kering and Dior for LVMH.

These top-of-the-range shops feature a décor that highlights the brand's DNA, including colours, trendy pieces and icons. In this way, customers are immersed in the world of the brand and their experience becomes unique. 

For example, Chanel's DNA is represented by camellia, tweed, black and white, ribbons and even pearls.

 
Luxury houses are also showcased in auction rooms such as Artcurial.

2)Things that surprised me and that I liked: 

I was amazed by the set-up, the decoration and some of the luxury items in certain sales outlets.
 Like these bottles of Ruinart:

Or these iconic pieces by Alexander McQueen, which resonate with my style of dress:

3) Places that resonated with me: 

Avenue Montaigne because the architecture reminds me so much of London, which is my favourite, dream city.

4) My perspective on luxury has evolved :

When I think back to my first impressions of luxury, I remember a time when I perceived it as simply a demonstration of excessive wealth, removed from the realities of everyday life. Over time, however, my view of luxury has evolved significantly, and this experience on this school trip has confirmed this change in my perception of this world.

I realised that luxury added value to life. 

I learned to recognise the refinement and exceptional craftsmanship behind luxury products, as well as the importance of attention to quality and sustainability. 

I began to see luxury as a way to indulge, recharge and look after yourself. I realised that treating ourselves to moments of relaxation in luxurious surroundings can contribute to our emotional and mental well-being.

Lia Gibbs.