The birthplace and epicentre of style and splendour, 13 Rue de la Paix has been home to Cartier’s flagship store for nearly 125 years. It was here in 1899 that Louis Cartier — who joined his father Alfred — decided to give the family business more prominence on the most fashionable street in Paris. It was here in the 1920s that Jeanne Toussaint rose to fame as creative director for the Maison, where she turned Cartier into a statement of popular culture.
To preserve its unique heritage and prepare the Maison for a new chapter, the iconic building underwent a massive renovation that lasted two years. Reinvented and refurbished, it was unveiled to the public last October as 13 Paix.
Reimagining this 32,300sq ft showroom was no small feat. The Maison engaged three teams of architects to construct the historic building, which now houses 10 salons over six storeys. There are two expansive floors of retail space with sections dedicated to high jewellery and bridal pieces, a service floor for customisation, a workshop area for in-house artisans, an archive section holding prized gems, and a penthouse residence to entertain unique customers and guests.
Original design features and historical details – including the neo-Classical style façade, the historical elements of the salons, and the decorative details, including the old mouldings of certain enfilades — sit alongside bright and contemporary interiors that maintain a quintessential Parisian style true to Cartier’s DNA.
And like all Cartier renovations, for which protecting the environment and biodiversity is a strategic priority, this unique project meets the highest ecological standards. The entire project has been designed to ensure the sustainability of the building and to meet all the conditions for obtaining the highest grade of BREEAM environmental certification shortly. The façade, for example, has been offered a fresh livery with the addition of a vertical garden brought to life by Cartier perfumes designer Mathilde Laurent in collaboration with botanical design specialist Studio Mary Lennox.
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The revamped Paris flagship comes on the heels of Cartier’s earlier remodelling of its New Bond Street store in London in 2018 and Fifth Avenue mansion in New York City in August 2022.
Much like New York and London, 13 Paix will exhibit some archival or collector pieces. There will also be exclusive pieces designed for sale, such as a Nécessaire à Parfum case, watches, and Panther jewellery engraved with “13 Paix Paris” or a “13 Paix” coat of arms. Completing this tribute to some of Cartier’s favourite themes are five High Jewellery creations and three exceptional limited-edition watches: a Tonneau, a Tank Asymétrique and a Cloche featuring the number 13 at 12 o’clock and the word “Paix” at one o’clock.
The retail floors
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Inside 13 Paix, the Concierge team will welcome and direct guests according to their expectations and desires with the exceptional service of a five-star hotel.
When you enter, your eyes are immediately drawn to the back of the ground-floor boutique, where an atrium has been created in the spirit of the inner courtyard of a Parisian building. The glass roof above it allows natural light to flood the six levels of the building, amplifying the space and creating a link between the different floors.
The retail space — where you’ll find Cartier’s full range of watches, jewellery, leather goods and accessories — occupies the first two floors of the building, covering more than 15,000 sq ft.
On the ground floor, two historic salons have benefited from a careful restoration and decorative elements that breathe new life into them. These warm wood-panelled rooms, which showcase the Maison’s watchmaking and vintage creations, contain some of the hidden treasures of Cartier’s heritage, such as Jean Cocteau’s academician sword from the Académie Française and a collection of rare books and archives in the library of the Louis Cartier Salon, which revisits the office of the artisan who created the Maison’s style and global renown.
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The new central staircase, with a bannister featuring plant-like motifs, leads to the Jeanne Toussaint Salon on the right. Located in the former office of the woman who succeeded Louis Cartier as head of design from 1933 to 1970, this majestic yet intimate space, which opens onto the bustling Rue de la Paix, is flanked by two small salons - Emerald and Ruby – and will be dedicated to the presentation of the boutique’s exclusive creations.
The second floor is dedicated to the world of engagements and weddings. Like the ground floor, the fine materials, precious details, pastels, and golden colours are all bathed in soothing light. This play of transparencies with curves and counter-curves inspired by the plant kingdom all create a warm, cosy and relaxed atmosphere of great elegance.
The third floor is entirely dedicated to High Jewellery. It can be accessed via the main staircase or by a private lift for visitors who prefer more discretion. There, in the daylight, overlooking the Rue de la Paix, the salons known as Art Deco, Indes and Inspiration – reserved for special orders – and the Faune et Flore salon just off the patio, quite literally immerse the visitor in the influences of the Maison and the key periods of its style. They are exclusive alcoves designed to welcome the emotions evoked by an encounter with such exceptional pieces. They are linked by the architectural and decorative choices, which all contribute to a sensual, luminous and gentle scenography.
The reinvention of the first three levels, the discovery and retail space was entrusted to Claire Bétaille and Bruno Moinard of the Moinard Bétaille agency, who have been designing and fitting out Cartier boutiques for over twenty years. The approach of the two lead architects was inspired by their in-depth knowledge of the Cartier identity and their deep respect for its heritage and codes.
Service and craftsmanship
Moving upwards, the higher floors entrusted to Laurène Barbier Tardrew and Romain Jourdan, architects and designers of Studioparisien, are dedicated to repairing and customisation, jewellery workshops, and the Maison’s archives. Customers invited to the service floors can enjoy engraving services at the Customisation Bar while their children can partake in various creative activities.
On this floor, you’ll also find 18 workbenches, all of which benefit from the soft natural light provided by the atrium. The surrounding areas are contemporary-looking salons for the few privileged clients who have been granted access to this reserved level, and glass cupboards display a few objects that witness the long and prestigious traditional craftsmanship of these workshops.
In a press statement, the designers shared their concept: “We were careful to design a concept that embodied the timelessness and memory of the Maison while at the same time infusing contemporary gestures and sculpting the space by creating refined interiors that shake up classicism. With the hands of the most incredible French artisans and masters of art, we used gold to add boldness, detail and finesse to the wall decorations and unique furniture to pay tribute to the creative vocabulary of the Maison.
“In reinterpreting the Parisian allure, we chose to play with the Parisian sky, the domes and ceilings, the lighting fixtures of the palaces, the floors of the covered galleries and the codes of Haussmannian interiors, always respecting the foundations of the Cartier style. Finally, we favoured softness and femininity for the atmosphere by accompanying our designs with tensioned curved lines, sometimes punctuated with a few touches of extravagance and colour.”
A residence beneath the rooftops
For the top floor of the building, Cartier entrusted Parisian architect Laura Gonzalez with the decoration of its Residence, a private space imagined as Cartier’s take on a Parisian apartment, complete with a dining room, large kitchen and winter garden.
Blended with plant motifs, an explosion of colours, luxurious materials and shapes, furniture and fabrics, this entire space is designed for entertaining, hosting cultural events, or simply for one’s artistic pursuits.
The interior is punctuated by several luxury artisanal crafts, such as a painting on silk velvet embroidered with paper — the joint work of Gonzalez, Ateliers Gohard and Lucie Touré. Garlands of branches made entirely of glass found on the walls are the work of the mosaicist Pierre Mesguich, who also did the mosaic floor of the small winter garden.
“At the heart of 13 Paix, the Residence is an extraordinary yet intimate space which appears to be in contrast with the rest of the building due to its purpose and volume. A different approach was needed, one that plays on contrasts and surprise. This apartment, which seems to be suspended in the clouds, was a wonderful creative playground where intimacy and gentleness prevailed,” says Gonzalez.
“Together with the artisans, we have drawn on Cartier’s imagination and creations to create furniture inspired by certain pieces or styles that have marked the Maison’s history. On the walls, in an exceptionally embroidered screen, in the marble marquetry of a table, we find its menagerie, plant motifs, the design of a jewel... This poetic staging of the Cartier universe makes it an alcove full of joyful surprises that invite you into its dream world.”
