The new 68 Champs Elysees: the Guerlain Abode Gets Re-invented & Limited Editions for Guerlain Perfume Fans

In time for the holidays the Parisian flagship of Guerlain is re-opening its gilded doors to the dedicated beauty and fragrance lover to enjoy their renovated interiors at 68 Champs-Elysées.

The Maison Guerlain has reopened 68, Champs-Elysees, its mythical place. Located on the most beautiful avenue in the world since 1913, the historical store now offers doubled surface in a masterly decor. The architect and designer Peter Marino has set his eyes on this prestigious heritage, in order to offer the most luxurious Guerlain expression of its brand. Then as now, creativity, boldness and modernity are at the rendezvous.

To awaken the nose and tantalise the taste buds, Guerlain has created a unique place, the restaurant 
"Le 68 Guy Martin ", born of the encounter between two talents, excelling in both arts of perfumery and gastronomy: Thierry Wasser, Guerlain Perfumer since 2008, and Guy Martin, Michelin-starred at Grand Véfour. Reservations: + 33 1 45 62 54 10 or contact@le68guymartin.com
An indispensable addition at anyone's Parisian must-see addresses guide when visiting the city of Lights.
On the first floor, the Guerlain Institute immerses us in a world of well-being and beauty, with an entirely new personalized program. Reservations: +33 1 45 62 11 21

In addition there is the La Cour des Senteurs, commemorated in a special fragrance edition developed by Guerlain. With the opening of a boutique in the Cour des Senteurs in Versailles, Guerlain is uniting its destiny with that of the former Royal City. Located right at the heart of the oldest district of Versailles just a stone's throw from the Château, this unique site looks to contribute to the renown and profile of the time-honoured art of perfumery, both in France and abroad.
The heir of the perfumers who supplied the Royal Court, Guerlain is reviving this prestigious past and majestically offering a new expression of the brand. This new Guerlain boutique looks to pay a contemporary homage to the expertise of French artistic craftsmanship, a real living heritage. The 17th century saw the dazzling rise of luxury under the influence of Louis XIV in Versailles, the official residence of the King from 1682 onwards. Manufactures were created, and Louis XIV surrounded himself with the best artists and craftsmen of his time. Today, true to the Sun King's spirit, the Château de Versailles provides a stage for contemporary art during temporary exhibitions.
Like a bridge between the past and the future, this boutique aims to offer a place for all perfume lovers to meet and share.

Last but not least the classic Eau Imperiale is celebrating 160 years. For the occasion, Guerlain has issued a special edition in a specially decorated bottle and box. Feast your eyes upon it.

Changes at Guerlain & Goutal: Repackaging & New Boutique Image

Two well-known French brands belonging to bigger business groups are doing a twist on their presentation and in some cases possibly a rethinking of their products. Guerlain and Goutal need no introductions, as any perfume lover is familiar with their well-loved iconography. Yet, this seems about to change in some ways.

 To take first things first, Guerlain is changing the pattern of making and selling one of its lower sellers, Jardins de Bagatelle (reviewed on these pages). "As of 2013, the original Jardins de Bagatelle bottle is taken out of production. It is being replaced by the bee atomizer, with a green label. It will only come as Eau de Parfum, while the Eau de Toilette is being discontinued." [source]

Jardins de Bagatelle eau de toilette is therefore no more and the revamping into an Eau de Parfum in the bee bottle can only mean one thing: a single size and a spiked price. [Lady Jicky, if you're reading, please stock up on Jardins de Bagatelle in Eau de toilette]. Well, at least they didn't move it into the Les Parisiennes line which is boutique-exclusive and much more expensive. Cessation of the production of a difficult and unique bottle for the fragrance in favor of a more generic and easily recognizable one is probably adequately reasoned by the cost vs. profit equation.

On the conceptual front, Peter Marino is in the midst of renovating the legendary 68 Champs-Elysées headquarters in Paris; works are in full swing as the reveal is set to be revealed July 2014. The last renovation of the flagship Guerlain was completed in 2005 by Andrée Putman, right when the sponsoring from LVMH practically signaled a new era for Guerlain (even though the take-over was in mid-1990s, it took some years for the new direction to start showing). Perhaps with Putman recently deceased, the renovation is indeed a new leaf.

Annick Goutal, on the other hand, is enjoying a renewed expansion thanks to solving its distribution problems a while ago under new patronage. The first step of renovation comes with Les Colognes Goutal. Not entirely new, since the Colognes reprise the beloved scents of Eau d'Hadrien, Neroli and Vetiver, all classics in their own right, yet the repackaging of Les Colognes Annick Goutal proposes a more distinctive and more generous presentation: the bottles become larger, at 200 ml of liquid, more elongated, with a simpler, solid matte gold cap and a white label with the Annick Goutal insignia in gold and a curvaceous gold edge.The colognes will retail at 135 euros.

The whole line will be color-coded anew for a more distinctive look and the boutiques will follow the new look, come April 2013. According to Christina Möller-Theulle, international marketing director for parfums Goutal, the new concept will be for the shops to become an experience in their own right through a facelift of the displays and the color-coding of the collections. The Saint-Sulpice shop marries the ironwork staircase with the butterfly wings which have become an emblem for Goutal, while the rue de Castillogne boutique juxtaposes the concrete floors inlaid with gold ivy with a carved, semi-fluted gigantic display. The company is very much interested in the Asian market, seeing as Goutal is the leader in niche fragrances in Japan with their Petite Chérie, and are accordingly planning on opening "selling booths" in both China and Thailand.

With thanks to Mr.Guerlain and AlbertCAN.