Bode Aujla, 36 weeks pregnant with her second child, spoke to CFDA about opening the first shop overseas.
“We took our time to find the right spot; this one had the right square footage, great location near the shops in the Palais Royal, and ample window space, including one that looks out on the Place Valois,” Bode Aujla said.
In a moment of serendipity, she discovered her American French real estate agent through her parents’ friend, who also knew the agent’s family.
Since the brand had staged presentations and shows in Paris, Bode and her husband and business partner Aaron Aujla—a furniture and interior designer whose firm Green River Projects constructed brand settings from runways to retail stores—had some understanding of French business bureaucracy.
“Though nothing could have prepared me for the different permits, regulations, and codes adherence necessary,” she continued.
While it may have been a logistical challenge, the result was worth it.
Aaron and team were there to greet guests for last Friday’s opening cocktail, including Eva Chen, Sarah Andelman, Julie Gilhart, Rickie De Sole, and L’Officine Universelle Buly’s Ramdane Touhami, who advised the Aujla’s on Paris bureaucracy. The crowd enjoyed the 1930s salon mood of the 2000-square-foot space that the duo designed together.
The Aujlas are aligned enough that Emily, a CFDA member, could create, brainstorm, and troubleshoot the buildout from New York while her husband made multiple trips to Paris and a cousin oversaw the construction.
Drawing upon the brand’s American nature and French influence – the latter courtesy of French hotelier Charles Ritz, an avid American outdoorsman with a fly-fishing passion – warmth was provided to the all-white space with trompe l’oeil marble and wood-paneled walls, custom brass light fixtures with pleated shades trimmed in antique fringe and an arched paneled vintage wall mirror.
Charmingly eclectic décor quirks include sofas made from French silks and OOAK shirting, including a French antique piece sourced in the U.S. and shipped to reside in the store. A deaccessioned table from the National Bank of France held neatly folded clothing, and Bode family photos bedecked a side table. Fisherman baskets and Bamboo fishing rods from French manufacturer Pezon et Michel are also on display and pay homage to Ritz.
