The Hotel Lutetia is smack in the heart of the Saint-Germain-des-Prés, a very Chi-Chi (Posh) area of Paris.
The construction of this luxury hotel was initiated by the once owner of Le Bon Marché to accommodate his wealthy customers at the turn of the century. A feast for any “Anyone” to visit. It is a beautiful Art Nouveau Style hotel and home of a first of a kind Art Deco bar in Paris which still exists totally intact today. The Lutetia Hotel has everything to please the elite clientele back then as today.
The pool was built in 1935 by French architect Lucien Béguet and up until about 30 some years ago was home to many swimmers in the neighborhood.
Today it is the home of the new Hermès Concept store. Interestingly the beautiful space dominated the actual Hermes merchandise. What a strange concept! Isn’t it usually the reverse? Was this done intentionally? I had asked an Hermès sales person about this and of course they replied with a copy/paste response, “Oh but no. The lieu blends well with our beautiful products but does not at all overshadow it.” My response was: “Bien sûr” (Of Course). Bullshit it doesn’t!
When you walk in you see immediately these wooden trellises in a beehive form standing in the background. Quite exquisite but I do not understand the concept of it and how it relates to Hermès. In fact, no one could answer this. The staircase ramp was another bit of eye candy and I love it’s tunnel interior design. I was not the only one, everyone in the boutique commented on it on this and many photos were taken besides mine.
The space is bright, large and elegant. Mosaic everywhere which makes sense since this pool was historically classified in 2005 keeping original architecture and design protected. Denis Montel designed a clean and sophisticated space which fits well with the Hermes image and this I can completely understand.
You see for yourselves at 17, rue de Sèvres in the 6th arrondissement, Paris. I would love to read your comments.
