La Samaritaine
La Samaritaine was from 1869 to 2005 a Parisian department store with an upscale range and luxury goods to last 48,000 m² of retail space making it the largest department store in Paris. It is an ensemble of four buildings, which is at the Pont Neuf in the 1st arrondissement on the right bank of the Seine. Since 2001 it is owned by the French luxury goods group LVMH Moët Hennessy - -. Louis Vuitton SA La Samaritaine ( Magasin 2) was closed in 2005.
As part of an extensive redesign of the entire Samaritaine complex to be converted into a diverse center with shops, offices, day care centers and homes. In the prestigious building on the Quai de la Mégisserie ( Magasin 2) a luxury hotel of LVMH subsidiary ' Cheval Blanc ' will move. With the overall planning of the Japanese architecture firm SANAA was commissioned. From planning the entire block is concerned, the main building at the Rue de Rivoli to the original by Frantz Jourdain planned, but never executed emblematic facade achieved by a new design and thus a contemporary complement to the Art Deco building on the Seine page can be realized.
History
The founder Ernest Cognacq (1839-1928) began as a street vendor of ties on the Pont Neuf. His wife Marie -Louise Jay (1838-1925) had previously been the first assistant in the costume department of the Bon Marché. 1869 Cognacq rented his first small boutique in a cafe on the corner building between the rue du Pont- Neuf and the Rue de la Monnaie in front of leading- Pont Neuf A year later he was able to buy up the café and expand the store, which he named La Samaritaine gave. In 1872 he married Marie -Louise Jay, whom he had known since 1856. Cognacq was based on the methods of sale of Aristide Boucicaut, but admitted the department heads great powers a.
From 1883 to 1933 La Samaritaine was extended several times, especially 1903-1907 by the Art Nouveau architect Frantz Jourdain and 1933 in the style of Art Deco by Henri Sauvage. The House 2 ( Magasin 2) is now fully listed building, the triangular House 3 between the streets Rue de Rivoli, Rue du Pont- Neuf and the Rue de Boucher with facade and roof ( in accordance with Regulation Decree en France du 25 juillet 1990 ). Behind the house 2 ( Magasin 2) is adjacent to a fourth business. In the 1960s and 1970s, the department store advertised with the slogan: "On trouve tout à la Samaritaine " (Eng. " In Samaritaine you will find everything "). Had the closure of the nearby central wholesale market of Les Halles in 1969 and its relocation to the outskirts of Paris, a sensitive loss of clientele result. After losses in the 1990s, La Samaritaine was acquired by the luxury goods company LVMH group for nearly 230 million euros in January 2001, LVMH had previously acquired also the Bon Marché. In spite of a corporate reorganization, the losses increased.
After an inspection by the Prefecture of Police in June 2005, the store was closed due to problems with the fire safety. The Board subsequently announced that cease operation for at least six years because of the necessary renovations. Two independent reports by the unions and by several architects came to the conclusion that in order to repair the security flaws, the store had only 18 months must be closed. Moreover, the trade unions of the company's management accused to have long known of the defects and to have the fire risk would be amplified further by providing additional storage areas had been established without permission. The risk of fire serves as a pretext to close an unprofitable operation. Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanoe insured against the Samaritaine stay definitely a business.
In June 2008, LVMH presented a concept of use, after which the building will be converted into a luxury hotel, offices and even some social housing by 2013.
The Deputy Mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, confirmed in an interview in July 2009 that the Paris city and regional council discussed the conversion of La Samaritaine into a luxury hotel and other facilities.
In April 2010, the Executive Committee of LVMH decided to instruct the Japanese architecture firm SANAA in the transformation of the building ensemble. The fully listed La Samaritaine ( Magasin 2) is converted into a luxury hotel of the LVMH - daughter ' Cheval Blanc ', while shops, offices, homes and daycare centers are provided in the other buildings.
Origin of the name
La Samaritaine was the name of a water pump to supply water to the Louvre and the Jardin des Tuileries on the Pont Neuf, which was built on the orders of King Henry IV according to the plans of the Flemish Jean Lintlaër. It was the first hydraulic water pump in Paris. It was rebuilt by Robert de Cotte 1712-1719 and then renovated by Jacques- Germain Soufflot and Ange-Jacques Gabriel.
The pump building was decorated with a relief which ( Gospel of John ) represented the saint's legend of Jesus' encounter with the Samaritan woman at Jacob's well, sculpted by Bernard and René Frémin ( 1672-1744 ). The building capped a clock with a mechanical figure of bells racket ( Jacquemart ) and later a Glockenspiel ( carillon ).
1813, the old pump was demolished. Near its previous location hired Ernest Cognacq 1869 his first business, which he named after the pump. The business name was colloquially abbreviated to "La Samar ".