Samaritaine

La Samaritaine is a large departmet store located t in Paris, France. It is right next to a Pont-Neuf metro station. The store was closed down because it violated safety codes and has gone through different owners. Now it is a hotel, apartment, offices, and a small clothing shop.

The store was first open in the year 1869 by Ernest Cognacq and his wife Marie- Louise Jay. The store first started selling ties. Ernest Cognacq expanded so much that he could no longer call it a “boutique”. The store was losing money since the 1970’s. Cognacq was inspired by the commercial methods of Aristide Boucicaut.

The store was then taken over by LVMH, a luxury goods maker. In 2010, a Japanese firm decided to take control of the building. Later it was made into a hotel, apartment, offices and inside is a small retail component. LVMH had also previously purchased Le Bon Marche, which is where La Samaritaine started. LVMH had the Japanese SANAA to renovate the building.

La Samaritaine was a clothing store that had many upgrades through the years. It was bought by LVMH, who also bought Le Bon Marche where Samaritaine was located. Then it was renovated after its closure, due to it going against building safety codes.