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As much as I love shopping online, nothing quite beats going to a proper boutique, where the shopping is as much about the experience as it is about leaving with some new goodies. They’re often the ones taking risks on young designers, creating an atmosphere no department store can recreate, and make shopping an intimate and luxurious experience for the customers again. So many of these boutiques are the unsung heroes of the fashion industry, so I’ve decided to shed a spotlight on some of my favourite ones on this blog.
First up is L’Éclaireur in Paris – which I got to discover on my trip with Farfetch, who they’re partnered with. L’Éclaireur – which literally translated means the enlightener – is actually a group of 6 beautiful designer boutiques all over Paris. The one I visited was L’Eclaireur Sévigné in the heart of Le Marais, opened in 2009. The incredible interior of the boutique (cardboard panels and built in tv screens, sprayed with car paint), was designed by Belgian artist Arne Quinze, who also designed the central wooden installation.
Once you can drag yourself away from admiring the incredible interior and the 147 animated tv screens, there’s an awful lot to discover in the boutique: from the moveable walls which pop open to reveal extra rails to the sheer quality of the clothes and accessories in every nook and crook of the shop, wandering through L’Éclaireur is a real adventure. This particular shop has only womenswear, and really caters to the high end client – with tons of Givenchy, Balenciaga, Ann Demeulemeester, Dries van Noten, Haider Ackermann and much, much more, as well as a few younger and lesser known designers (sadly I can’t think of one right now.).
At the front of the shop is a little, almost independent boutique offering slightly more accessible pieces, like sunglasses, jewellery, handbags and scarves – whereas the main shop is mostly just to admire for someone with my budget, the little shop offers the kind of things I’ll usually end up buying – perfect combo!
If you’re in the neighbourhood, L’Eclaireur is definitely not to be missed. I can’t speak for the other 5 boutiques, but I can only imagine they’re just as amazing. And if you’re not headed towards Paris anytime soon, don’t forget you can shop the boutique from anywhere on Farfetch.
L’Eclaireur Sévigné
40 rue de Sévigné
Paris 03
Open Mon -Sat, from 11am – 7pm
You’ll find lots more pictures of the shop on the Alex Loves Facebook page!
A few snaps from the little shop at the front:
