Fashion and luxury brands playing house is nothing new. In fact, Hermes has been doing it for almost 90 years, an area oft-overshadowed by the brand's scarves and iconic handbags. In the 1920s Hermes teamed with Jean-Michel Frank to create oak and sycamore leather-covered furniture. Graceful and streamlined, it was the height of chic.
Since then Hermes has introduced china and crystal, linens and decorative objects for the home, all beautifully crafted. But customers were more interested in ordering a Birkin or a Kelly bag to grace their arm than fine china to grace their dining table. That, however, looks set to change. Last November Hermes opened a store on Paris' Left Bank, almost half of which is devoted to home products.
It's an audacious move for a brand that chief executive Patrick Thomas (who succeeded the late Jean-Louis Dumas, a member of the fifth generation of this family-owned business) describes as not so much 'a luxury goods company', but a company of 'creative craftsmen'. Hermes artisans must undertake a minimum of three years training, and it takes 10 years before they are able to create every leather product in the workshop. Hermes is much more interested in the quality than quantity: 'Our philosophy is based on creativity and craftsmanship.' Given how long it takes to make those desirable Kelly bags, you can see his point.
On the site of the former swimming pool of the Hotel Lutetia and built in 1935 in the art nouveau style, Hermes rebuilds its foundations in l'art de vie (the art of living) as Helene Dubrule, managing director of Hermes Maison describes it. Retaining some of the original features of the listed building, the vast open space with its fluid, undulating lines present a full range of products from leather sofas and dining tables to cashmere throws.
Designed by RDAI agency (the architectural practice launched by Jean-Louis's late wife Rena Dumas), the modern store also features a bookshop, tea salon and florist. It is the first store to present its complete home collection and this will be rolled out to 40 other stores in the US, Asia and Europe during the next two years. A new floor devoted to Hermes Maison will be added to its Lee Gardens' store in Hong Kong and is set to open next January. This is to be followed by projects in Guangzhou and Beijing. Asia accounts for 17 per cent of the company's sales figures.
Dubrule's task has been to re-introduce the furniture line, which was abandoned many decades ago, and launch a range of furnishing fabrics and wall-coverings 'to complete Hermes' universe for the home.'