The end of a suspense that has lasted for several months: Louis Vuitton is to open its first hotel in Paris, at 103/111 avenue des Champs Elysées. This project crystallizes the diversification of the world’s largest luxury brand into the hotel-restaurant sector, initiated in France last year with its restaurant in Saint Tropez.
On Thursday September 28, the Paris departmental commission for commercial development approved the creation of a Louis Vuitton hotel at 103/111 avenue des Champs-Élysées. The site had been occupied by HSBC bank headquarters for some twenty years.
Back to basics for 103/111 des Champs-Elysées
The building was originally intended to house a new Dior flagship store. In the end, it will be another LVMH Maison that will take up residence here: Louis Vuitton.
The luxury trunk-maker will open the very first hotel establishment in its history. The choice of Paris reaffirms the brand’s French roots. It also represents a strategic break for the LVMH group, which used to test its concepts in Asia, particularly Japan and South Korea.
It’s also a return to its roots for the building, which was already a hotel when it opened in 1898. It was here that spy Mata Hari was arrested in her room and shot for high treason. In 1919, a bank was set up before the Wehrmacht took possession of the premises under Nazi occupation. After the Second World War, the HSBC bank set up its headquarters here.
The first Louis Vuitton Hotel in Paris
Louis Vuitton’s announcement puts an end to speculation that was rife in early September, when LVMH’s flagship Maison announced the opening of a second location on the world’s most beautiful avenue.
Initially refusing to divulge the building’s intended function, Louis Vuitton confined itself to evoking “a new historic chapter” close to its iconic flagship at 101 Avenue, acquired earlier this year by the luxury group.
An ambitious luxury hotel, opening in 2026 !
However, we’ll have to be patient before we can enjoy this exceptional setting with its Haussmanian façade. The 6,000 m2 Louis Vuitton hotel on the Champs-Elysées is scheduled to open in 2026.
In the meantime, the Parisian luxury house has announced that a giant Monogram trunk will cover the façade for the duration of the works.
According to an expert interviewed by Fashion Network, Louis Vuitton could pay the equivalent of 60 million euros in rent each year to occupy 103/111 Avenue.
A project in line with the revitalization of the Champs Elysées
Enthusiastically, the LR mayor of Paris’s 8th arrondissement, Jeanne d’Hauteserre, told Actu Paris that this hotel project promises “something exceptional“.
Jeanne d’Hauteserre emphasizes the heightened appeal of the Champs-Elysées, particularly in light of the renovations planned for the 2024 Olympic Games: “everyone wants to be on the Champs-Elysées.”
The town councillor refers to the numerous urban development projects, in particular the standardization of equipment on the avenue’s various terraces between now and April 2024, with the aim of restoring a strong identity to the district.
In fact, the mapping of the district is being reinforced, with the upper part of the avenue becoming a luxury playground and the lower part devoted to sports brands. The forthcoming opening of the Lulu Lemon and Foot Locker flagships is a case in point.
According to the barometer published by Cushman & Wakefield, the leading prestige real estate company, footfall on the avenue is up 15% year-on-year. Footfall is at an all-time high, exceeding pre-covid levels by 80%.
Mytraffic, Europe’s leading flow analysis company, has calculated that over a million pedestrians cross the avenue every month. This represents as many potential customers for the surrounding stores, but also for the nearby hotels.
As Christian Dubois, partner at Cushman & Wakefield, explains, “72% of the clientele on the Champs-Elysées comes from tourism, whether French or international.”
The Champs-Elysées even ranks third among Europe’s busiest shopping avenues, behind Gran Via in Madrid and Oxford Street in London.
This renewal comes at a cost: space rental costs an average of 16,350 euros per m² per year.
Hospitality, a fast-growing field for LVMH
Until now, Louis Vuitton has been known primarily for its leather goods and ready-to-wear collections. Since January 2020, the powerhouse of the world’s leading luxury brand has been diversifying into the hushed world of hospitality management with its very first café and restaurant, in Osaka, Japan.
It wasn’t until June 2022, however, that the French were able to sample this new terrain of expression with the opening of a restaurant in the brand’s colors within the White 1921 hotel, in the charming Mediterranean climate of Saint-Tropez. An ephemeral culinary address renewed last summer by the talented duo Arnaud Donckele and Maxime Frederic.
Until now, the LVMH group has had little presence in the hotel world, owning essentially five Cheval Blanc establishments and 47 Belmond Hotels, trains and cruises (including the Cipriani in Venice, the Copacabana Palace in Rio and the Splendido in Portofino).
As for branded hotels, Bvlgari was the first to take the plunge in Milan in 2004, thanks to a joint venture with the Marriott group. Since then, LVMH has opened 13 Bvlgari hotels.
Hospitality is a fast-growing sector, enabling the LVMH group to reach out to a new clientele that is both connected and well-traveled.
By offering exceptional emotional and sensory experiences, the hotel also represents a hitherto underestimated access point for aspirational (coffee, events, catering, coworking, etc.) and affluent customers.
The future Hôtel Louis Vuitton is set to embody the values of the eponymous Maison and its ode to travel.
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Lire aussi > CHAMPS-ELYSÉES : A MUCH HIGHER FREQUENCY THAN BEFORE !
Featured photo: © Louis Vuitton
