Enfants Riches Déprimés opens first Asia store in Seoul
Located in Seoul's Dosan district, the new Enfants Riches Déprimés store spans two floors and was designed by the Paris-based brand's founder and creative director, Henri Alexander Levy, in partnership with architectural firm Fearon Hay, with landscaping by Case Charles Fleher.
Sat alongside French luxury giant Hermès, the new store stands as a temple-inspired building that riffs on Neo -Classical architecture. From the outside, full-length, rationalism-inspired windows make up the façade, leading inside to concrete clad surfaces and reclaimed wood obtained from dismantled Korean structures.
Two Wallace Berman 'verifax' collages in a 25-foot concrete monumental church-like staircase connect the two floors, with upstairs furnished with a pair of Gustav Serrurier-Bovy's club chairs in mahogany and brass and a daybed by Jean Prouvé.
The store's fitting rooms are framed by the brand's signature chainmail curtain, complemented by a chain assemblage sculpture by Levy, who founded the brand in 2020.
'My philosophy is based on emotional design, I was never interested in just building a store or selling a product. Every part of the experience has been thoughtfully worked to be emotionally and architecturally considered with the aim of creating something spiritual, personal, and provocative," said Levy.
"This space offers something different from the homogenization of the mass luxury market, often reduced to uninspired design driven by boardroom decisions. I do not expect to be universally understood, but I invite the customer to step into our Korean temple and feel something.'
The Enfants Riches Déprimés store opening in Seoul marks the brand's expansion across Asia. The brand is currently distributed through a network of over 80 luxury retail partners worldwide.
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