Closed in 2005 due to obsolescence, the Samaritaine department store reopened in April 2020, after 15 years of absence, announces the LVMH group, owner of the premises since 2001.
By Luxus Plus
The LVMH group will have invested 750 million euros in the work and development of the new complex assembling department stores, luxury hotels, social housing, daycare centres and offices.
“It will be a magnet, but it is also a mixed project and a living program because people will live here, not to mention the crèche. It is the city of tomorrow on 70,000 m2, where offices, housing and shops coexist“, says Jean-Jacques Guiony, CEO of La Samaritaine and CFO of the LVMH group.
In this new project, the department store will open under the DFS selective distribution banner and will only occupy a surface area of 20,000m2. 600 brands will be represented, most of them belonging to the LVMH group, combining “fashion, lifestyle and gastronomy”. 12 restaurant points will also be part of the department store.
This new centre will consist of the luxury hotel Cheval Blanc with a bird’s eye view of the Seine. It will also include offices covering 15,000 m², a neighbourhood crèche with a capacity of 80 beds and 97 social housing units managed by France Habitat.
The closure of the Samaritaine had caused many redundancies. During this reopening, 1,500 jobs should be created, allowing former employees to be given priority to find a job.
“It took five years to define a project and convince the Paris City Hall; five years to obtain the permit and respond to appeals, and five years for the colossal work that has been undertaken“, Jean-Jacques Guiony said on Tuesday.
