Cire Trudon, the oldest candle maker in the world – founded in 1643, is delighted to announce the opening of its first permanent boutique outside of France in one of London’s newly fashionable shopping quarters.
The Cire Trudon boutique can be found on Chiltern Street, nestled between the up-and-coming Portman Village area of central London and the fringes of Marylebone; a quiet and unassuming street that has seen recent changes, with numerous niche boutique and cafe openings and more planned for the near future. Chiltern Street will also see the London debut for hotelier André Balazs (Chateau Marmont, The Mercer, The Standard) at the old fire station across the road from the store – another opening set to put the area firmly on the map.
United Perfumes, UK distributors of Cire Trudon, along with the French custodians of this historic candle maker desired something special for London. They desired something that fully captures the spirit of Cire Trudon, successfully conveying the sense of heritage and longevity, yet not an exact copy of the original Paris rue de Seine store. The resulting design is an individual ‘experience’ that is more akin to a salon than a traditional shop, where the inspiration is definitely ‘old world French’.
The space is quirky, with an unusual layout that perfectly suits the brand. Wall colours and coverings, including ‘Directoire’ shades of paintwork, antique French wallpapers and mirrors have been chosen to reflect the company’s historic associations; the floor is covered from reclaimed woods that are redolent of the wax wood floors of French chateaux.
The ‘cabinet de curiosités’ design incorporates an eclectic collection of antique pieces, cabinets, sconces and chandeliers forming informal display areas for the eponymous Cire Trudon candles, with hidden corners to discover and contemplate the exquisite collections.
The Cire Trudon shop carries everything from the collection, mirroring what is sold at the Paris boutique – scented candles, ‘grande bougies’, scented pillar candles, ‘buste’ candles, room sprays, perfumed ‘stink bombs’, as well as associated candle chandlery.
New additions to the London candle collection, previously only available in Paris and exclusive to the store, include their historic taper candles ‘Les Trudonnes’, aptly named thus by one of their more famous former-patrons Marie Antoinette; as well as dinner candles in a myriad of colours to suit any space or occasion.
Cire Trudon is ‘the’ fashionable destination for scented candles and a ‘must’ for any discerning dinner party host that wishes to find a modern twist on an ‘ancien’ world.
MORE: http://bit.ly/r2ecot
