A leading think tank, the Centre du Luxe et de la Création organizes an annual Luxury Summit. The theme chosen for the 22nd edition in 2025 is “Passing on luxury in a changing world.” As with every edition, this is an opportunity to reward the luxury talents who are driving the sector forward and raising its profile. The jury recently met to shortlist the winners.
The next awards ceremony for luxury and creative talents will take place on June 19 at the Intercontinental Hotel in Paris. It will close the Luxury Summit, organized by the Center for Luxury and Creation.
The eagerly awaited presentation of the Luxury Summit trophies to players from various creative industries is an opportunity to showcase emerging and established talent in the fields of fashion, accessories, cosmetics, gastronomy, design, architecture, garden art, automotive, and crafts.
What is the point of such recognition? It is a way of acknowledging and celebrating the excellence of the meticulous work of these men and women from diverse backgrounds, who combine high-end creation with the transmission of know-how. But that’s not all: the art of management is also honored.
Talent in figures
Of the 100 applications received this winter, 80 passed the first selection two weeks ago. Choosing 14 talents from among the 47 still in the running was the task of the jury, which met on Thursday, May 22, in the former Christofle factory in Saint-Denis, nestled on the banks of the Seine.
With less than a month to go before the big day, the atmosphere around Jacques Carles, President of the Centre du Luxe et de la Création and President of the jury, was studious and focused. In this village with a factory soul, the deliberations were intense. The jury members had to decide and agree on the future winners from among the candidates.
Nine talents cultivating essential values of luxury will be rewarded, namely Talents for Audacity, Well-being, Elegance, Harmony, Innovation, Originality, Rarity, and finally Seduction.
Three talents will be recognized for their exceptional careers. They will receive the Talent for Management, the Imprint of the Year, and the Golden Talent awards.
Finally, two special prizes from the jury and the artistic crafts will honor the body of work and particular expertise of a male or female creator.
Encounters at the summit of daring and innovation
Jacques Carles likes to emphasize “the diversity of the talents nominated.” “Every year, we have more and more candidates, more and more daring and innovation. When I created this event in 2002, having noticed that every professional lived in a silo, I was driven by the desire to bring them together because they complement each other. Through these awards, I also want to show that they exist through values and not through professions.”
This vision of creation in its plural sense is clearly shared by one of the talents nominated in the management category: Romain Gazzola. This visionary and dynamic entrepreneur embodies the new wave born of five generations shaped by masonry. With a degree in business law under his belt, he took over the reins of the family business, which at the time specialized in high-end structural work and the renovation of shops and private mansions.
Today, this energetic founding president of the Orfèvrerie collective is not only opening the doors of the 1,200 m² Eiffel Room, known as the multipurpose room, to the nominees and the jury, but above all he intends to open the doors to a new, more humanistic approach to management: “The Gazzola company brings together eleven workshops, representing 300 craftsmen. They are all part of an ecosystem in this village, except for the marble workshop, which has remained in Créteil. These different people work together naturally. My goal, since I started, has been to make the older generation aware of the importance of passing on and sharing their know-how. That’s what we value here at the Orfèvrerie, a real village.”
And in this village, under the glass roof of the Eiffel Room, time seems to stand still for a moment. It’s a rare opportunity to meet some of the talented people in the running: Paul de Livron, head of Apollo Wooden Wheel Chairs, presents his models of wooden wheelchairs. His first creation will remain unforgettable.
With a hint of pride, he confesses, “I gave it to Pope Francis during his visit to Marseille in September 2023.” This young designer has been nominated in the wellness category. Among the talents, the audacity is undeniably palpable.
David Léger, a designer specializing in stone, trained in Carrara, Italy, presents a table crafted from his favorite marble, “le grand antique d’Aubert,” with its ribbed black and white pattern, a flagship piece from his Erriape workshop.
Not to mention Alexandra Baaske, who champions innovation alongside Stéphane Turisk. Their credo? To innovate while respecting the traditional values of Jean-Claude Galluchat, a Parisian master leatherworker who was highly prized by the Marquise de Pompadour in the 18th century. Today’s leather goods are still made from stingray skin and are customized on request. Headphones, bracelets, cufflinks, jewelry boxes—all rival each other in style.
Finally, Hugo Volpei is a designer who cannot be overlooked. He arrived accompanied by two arty toilets in unusual colors, ranging from pink to purple. His company is humorously named Trône (Throne). “The name was obvious,” smiles the young designer, who was nominated in the audacity category. What else?
Read also > Luxury Talents 2024: Antoine Courtois (Ateliers de France) wins the Talent d’Or
Featured photo: © Lucile Gélébart
