Max Mara Revamps Historic Paris Flagship, Launches Creativa Concept in Shanghai
Max Mara’s Paris boutique marked 30 years with a makeover and expansion. The brand opened on the corner of Rue Bonaparte and Rue du Four in the city’s tony 6th arrondissement three decades ago, and has taken over an additional floor of its historic building.
Expanded to 6,000 square feet, the boutique occupies the ground and first floors, where the brand preserved an existing apartment through the revamp. Now, the boutique is designed with a series of small rooms, meant to invoke a homey atmosphere.
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The renovation was overseen by Nicola Gerber Maramotti, the company’s ambassador who oversees the development of the group’s European shops.
Designed like a residence to invoke the Italian spirit with a series of small rooms, the most exclusive is tucked away with a cozy fireplace and artworks from painter Sally Ross from founder Achille Maramotti’s private collection of contemporary art, available upon reservation. Other rooms feature space for collection presentations from the brand’s in-house stylists.
The ground floor features marble shelving with touches of camel and rust, anchored by a gold wall and hosting leather goods, accessories and eyewear at one end, and selected collections at the other. Upstairs, the brand has recreated the original herringbone wood parquet in aged oak, with a massive, bed-like sofa sitting front and center. The brand’s famous coats are featured here against a backdrop of paper collage that play on historic card patterns. Other areas include installations featuring the outerwear as art.
Max Mara’s historical connection to the space and neighborhood holds special significance for the renovation. Gerber Maramotti recalled that the company opened the boutique in the Saint Germain neighborhood to recognize its cultural roots amongst writers, including Jean Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir, artists including Juliette Gréco, as well as its historic brasseries.
“Ideally, I would like our customer, when visiting 37 Rue du Four, to capture something of this atmosphere in this wonderful French maison, which we have expanded and renovated just for her,” said Gerber Maramotti.
At the same time on the other side of the world, Max Mara is opening its Creativa space in Shanghai’s HKRI shopping mall.
The concept is centered around Max Mara’s factories in Italy, with an emphasis on the handicraft that goes into their garments, and is lined with screens to give guests an immersive view of the facility.
The space has a warehouse feel — shipping crates have been turned into display units, furniture and the walls of changing rooms, while the location is decorated with the rawness of cork, plywood and recycled cardboard. The collections are presented on a brass tracks and a motorized garment conveyor moves pieces through, while salespeople are dressed in lab coats in the brand’s signature camel color.
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