Following last year’s closure of Paul & Joe‘s men’s line, founder Sofie Mechaly has returned to the highly competitive retail scene of Paris with a new multibrand retail concept which specifically targets the discerning yet trend-savvy male. Called BDC, short for Boys Don’t Cry, it’s a collab effort of Mechaly and Felix Boehm, a Belgian designer who has taken on the role as the store’s creative director. Not surprisingly, the BDC store occupies the former location of the Paul & Joe men’s boutique in the leafy St.-Germain area of the French capital. Situated on the ground floor of a mid-19th century building, the boutique features sleek modern interior setting by Payam Askari, a designer and architect based in Paris and Amsterdam. Fully in sync with the store’s forward fashion concept, the design codes are distinctly modern, and this is instantly evident by the sleek façade with large floor-to-ceiling windows, and entirely crafted from hand-brushed steel.
The material’s subtle shine is extrapolated indoors by way of polycarbonate wall panels with a metallic coating. The lustre is counterbalanced by sections of undulating wall panels in a pristine white hue and terrazzo flooring. Interestingly, BDC is designed in such a way that it features very few fixtures, allowing for endless configurations to suit many a showcase or event. Adding up to the store’s distinctive sense of shopping are a range of carefully sourced furnishings and artworks, including a neon piece by multimedia artist Claude Lévêque, a custom-made counter and two matching displays by Swedish artist Hilda Hellström, all inspired by prehistoric imagery, and additional furniture pieces by lauded designers Cini Boeri and The Haas Brothers. As said, BDC takes a shine to forward labels, and it has garnered an eclectic list of brands to entice its growing following, including coveted names such as The Elder Statesman, Marni, Church’s, Sies Marjan, Garçons Infidèles and Off-White.
BDC
62 rue des Saints-Pères (St.-Germain)
75007 Paris
Telephone: +33 1 42229898
Mon-Sat 10.30-7.30
Publishers Note
Just to be clear – superfuture® is a design blog and not a political commentator. No surprise there. The scope of our content has always been global and borderless, however that can often mean covering projects in countries where we will not agree with the politics or actions of those countries. In a world that’s as screwed up as ever right now, the focus of our support is to those designers, architects and other creatives who aim to make the world a more liveable one – as opposed to people that try their hardest to destroy it. So if a project hits our desk and we like it based on its design credentials, we may choose to publish regardless of its location or creators nationality. superfuture® has always been inclusive and hopes for all current wars, aggression, violence, hate and extremism to end.
