Longchamp signs licensing agreement with Interparfums
"Under this exclusive worldwide agreement, Interparfums will be responsible for the creation, production, and distribution of fragrance lines available at Longchamp-branded points of sale and across selective distribution (department stores, perfumeries, and duty free shops)," the two groups announced in a joint press release.
Longchamp and Interparfums specified that the first launch under the agreement is planned for 2027.
The Interparfums group holds the perfume licenses for Boucheron, Lacoste, Karl Lagerfeld, and Van Cleef & Arpels, among others. It also owns the Lanvin, Goutal and Rochas perfume brands. The group reported sales of 880 million euros in 2024.
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France 24
an hour ago
- France 24
Iconic French chef stakes reputation on vegan menu
The 68-year-old has become the first three Michelin star chef in France to switch to an entirely plant-based menu, opening a new chapter in the world of luxury dining. Since July 21, Passard has stopped serving meat, fish, dairy products and eggs at L'Arpege, his restaurant in the French capital's chic seventh district that he has run for nearly 40 years. The only exception is honey that comes from the restaurateur's own beehives. Passard said the switch had been in the pipeline for a year. "There's light in this cuisine," he told AFP. "There are taste sensations that I've never experienced anywhere else." L'Arpege used to be known as one of the leading rotisseries in Paris. It earned three Michelin stars in 1996, and has held the distinction ever since. In 2001, Passard caused a stir in the rarefied world of French cuisine by dropping red meat from his menu and saying he would focus more on vegetables grown in his gardens. The shift made him one of the first ambassadors of plant-based cuisine. While Passard is motivated by environmental concerns in his new quest, it is above all a culinary challenge. The restaurant's updated menu includes mesclun praline with roasted almonds and melon carpaccio. Lunch costs 260 euros. Passard has no plans to become a vegan militant himself. "I still eat a little poultry and fish," he said. "But I'm more comfortable with plants. They allow me to learn." - 'Colossal task' French chef Claire Vallee knows from experience that Passard is up for a challenge. "It requires a lot more preparation, knowledge and research," Vallee said of plant-based dishes. "It's quite a colossal task." In 2021, her vegan restaurant in southwest France won a Michelin star, the first for an establishment serving only animal-free products in France. Vallee in 2016 launched ONA –- which stands for Origine Non Animale ("Non-Animal Origin") –- thanks to crowdfunding from supporters and a loan from a green bank. The establishment closed in 2022, and the 45-year-old chef went on to open several pop-up restaurants. Since then, no other French restaurant serving only animal-free products has been awarded a Michelin star. Internationally, vegan haute cuisine is rare. Eleven Madison Park in New York has kept its three stars after becoming exclusively vegan in 2021. In the Netherlands, De Nieuwe Winkel's plant-based menu has earned it two Michelin stars. Laurent Guez, a food critic for French newspaper Le Parisien and business daily Les Echos, said Passard's announcement was "a major event". But he also warned that not a lot of chefs could excel in the art of high-end plant-based gastronomy. "It's exceptional cuisine that not everyone can allow themselves to launch into," he said. Michelin guide international director Gwendal Poullennec said he was "delighted" with the transition at L'Arpege, describing it as a "positive approach". "We will continue to follow the evolution of L'Arpege, remaining faithful to our criteria," he told AFP. Passard has given himself two years to take his kitchen skills to a new level. Is he worried about losing his three stars? "I've never thought about that," he said.
Euronews
7 hours ago
- Euronews
On defence, France and Germany are inching closer but remain far apart
Germany is becoming more French - and vice versa - when it comes to defence but big differences in the state of their public finances and strategic thinking mean the so-called Franco-German engine is unlikely to be able to power a big shift in the way the EU as a whole does defence. "From a longer historical point of view, the degree of convergence (between the two countries) is arguably higher than it has been for, I would say, decades," Jacob F. Kirkegaard, a senior fellow at the Brussels-based Bruegel think tank, told Euronews. Both capitals see Russia as their biggest long-term threat, and both have pledged to pour hundreds of billions of euros into their military and defence industrial base. In Berlin, this has been dubbed a "Zeitenwende" (or historical turning point) while Paris said its latest military programmation law is "the ultimate strategic move". This convergence was driven by Russia's ongoing full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which brought back conventional war to European soil, Donald Trump's return to the White House, which has put in doubt continued long-term US commitment to Europe's security, and a change of leadership in Germany. The new chancellor, Friedrich Merz, "basically took what I can only describe as a Gaullist stance", Kirkegaard said, by saying that "Europe needs to prepare for a future without a US security guarantee". 'France is converging with Germany' Yet one example of how this rapprochement in defence remains a laborious process came last week when France's Emmanuel Macron and Merz sought to diffuse tensions over a joint €100 billion project to develop a sixth-generation fighter jet. At the core of the dispute is the demand by France to secure 80% of the workshare for the new Future Combat Air System (FCAS), negating previous agreements that it would be split equally between the two countries and Spain, which is also part of the project. The French demand, however, "should not be as surprising as it seems", Rafael Loss, a policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), told Euronews, given that one of the major differences between France and Germany is how differently they view their military and the purpose they serve. The armed forces in France are part of the national foreign policy - as recent deployments in the Sahel attest - with the country's overseas territories and its possession of the nuclear weapon adding to its global perspective. "That's why the French military is much more comfortable with acting unilaterally or outside of EU, NATO contexts (than Germany's), and this then extends to the kinds of capabilities that the French armed forces prefer acquiring," Loss said. "Everything that relates to the French nuclear deterrent has to work when France is alone. And that means that FCAS, which is supposed to replace the Rafale fighter bombers going forward in carrying French nuclear weapons, French military and political leadership will not accept a situation where they're dependent to produce this capability because the nuclear deterrent depends on that capability." "French industry will need to be able to produce this aircraft by themselves if push comes to shove. They're willing to cooperate when strategic orientations align, but ultimately they have to produce everything independently of others. And again, that's something that many in Germany and across Europe haven't quite realised," he added. 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For instance, Germany has asked to make use of a proposal by Brussels to loosen fiscal rules for defence spending, something France, which is targeted by an excessive deficit procedure, cannot do. France, which has consistently invested in defence over the last few decades, has less ground to cover, so to speak, but the sums advanced by the German government (including a €500 billion fund to boost the military and the country's infrastructure) should mean it catches up quickly. But their public finances also "fundamentally place them on different sides of negotiating tables" at the EU level, Kirkegaard said. The European Commission has put forward a plan to rearm Europe that it hopes will prompt member states to invest up to €800 billion before 2030. But most of that money is expected to come from member states' coffers, which in the case of France, are quite depleted. Given the scale of the task ahead, the Commission has been asked to come up with "innovative" financing options for defence. Macron has called for one of those options to be joint EU borrowing, something Germany has flat-out rejected. For Kirkegaard, this means that the crisis ushered in by Russia's war on Ukraine, is "a big wasted opportunity" for the bloc. "This crisis, the war in Ukraine, will not lead to materially more EU institutional or fiscal integration. It will lead to an expansion of the EU with Ukraine and maybe other countries but that's a different type of change to the EU and that's also very different than the last many big crises we've had," he said.
Euronews
3 days ago
- Euronews
EU member states adopt retaliatory hit list in response to US tariffs
The member states on Thursday approved the list of retaliatory tariffs proposed by the European Commission to counter US trade measures, with only Hungary voting against. The list includes an initial package of measures adopted in early April, with up to 30% tariffs targeting products including aircraft, cars and car parts, orange juice, poultry, soybeans, steel and aluminium, yachts. Bourbon whiskey was also included in the list despite intense lobbying by France and Ireland which fear US retaliation on wine and spirits. EU Industries were also consulted before the Commission proposed the list to the member states. The countermeasures will only enter into force if no deal is reached by the 1 August, the deadline set by US president Donald Trump from when he's set to impose 30% tariffs on EU imports. Anti-coercion instrument A qualified majority of member states also appears willing to trigger the anti-coercion instrument, which would enable the EU to hit US services if no deal is reached. Germany was for a long time resistant to using this powerful bazooka, but has now joined France, which has long been a strong advocate of the anti-coercion instrument. Following a dinner on Wednesday between German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron, a source from the Élysée stated the shared vision of both leaders on the ongoing negotiations between the EU and the US. 'They hoped for a satisfactory outcome to the discussions that would safeguard the EU's interests,' the source said, adding 'while simultaneously accelerating work on countermeasures — including the anti-coercion instrument — in coordination with the Commission, should an agreement not be reached.' The US currently impose 50% on EU steel and aluminium, 25% on cars and 10% on all imports. This article has been updated.
