When you here the word Birkenstock, would you ever connect it to Parisian chic? I certainly wouldn’t. But the ugly shoe trend has taken the hippie staple and made it fashion and now Birkenstock  has also made it design! The brand has just opened a new showroom on the Rue Saint Honoré in the heart of Paris and it is stunning. Don’t think you can combine Birkenstocks and high design? Scroll. You’ll be as amazed as I am.

Created to display Birkenstock 1774, the company’s collection of limited edition designer collaborations and special projects, the showroom is a perfect example of an idyllic Parisian apartment complete with parquet floors, paneled walls, stunning fireplaces and cascades of natural light.

The creative consultancy Vinson & Co juxtaposed the apartment’s classic architecture with modern furnishings in that elevated European way that I just cannot get enough of. Pieces in each jaw-droppingly pretty room come from mid-century icons like Cassina and Pierre Jeanneret and modern day show stoppers from Faye TooGood and Vitra.

The designer Birks just seem to casually rest among the perfectly composed rooms. They are cohesively filled with warm tones, worn leather, ceramics from well-known ceramicists including Simon Hasan and unique woven art created by embroiderer Geraldine Larkin using jute and felt – materials used in the making of Birks!

I would gladly call this showroom home, whether it came with the shoes or not. For now ,I’m plotting a trip to Paris to see this space and maybe pick up a pair of the Rick Owns Birkenstock collaboration. They have enough edge that they block the memories of Birks worn with socks out of my mind. 

If anyone is still headed to Paris before summer’s end, please go visit Birkenstock 1774 and report back if it is in fact as fabulous as this looks!

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photography by depasquale + maffini