TravTalk India Online Magazine
Romain Bernard, Deputy Director (Business Development), Printemps Paris, who was in Mumbai recently to meet important members of the travel trade, highlights why shopping at Printemps Paris, one of the most iconic department stores in the heart of Paris, is not just an activity, but an experience!
Hazel Jain
It is one of the most iconic department stores in the heart of Paris and houses more than 3,000 luxurious brands spread across 27,000 sq. mt. Printemps Paris also has 27 concept stores, one of which houses the first collection of the ‘Designers of Tomorrow’. Its Deputy Director (Business Development), Romain Bernard, was in Mumbai recently to meet some key trade partners. He says, “We were present in the Indian market in the past, but the world changed after the pandemic and so did the clients. So, I am here in India to say hello to key trade partners. We have a lot of interesting services to offer shoppers. Indians know about the international luxurious brands, so what is important for us is to offer them a unique experience. We try to transform a simple shopping activity into an immersive experience, and for them to be a Parisian for a day. We know that when Indian visitors come to Paris, they come for shopping first! Indian travellers love Paris, especially now with the ‘Emily in Paris’ show. They also love to visit Printemps shop, Indians are among the top 10 nationalities to visit us. When they visit Paris, they want to buy the latest trends in fashion and we are able to offer them this.”
Personal shoppers who speak Hindi!
Bernard highlights some interesting features that his store offers. “We offer different kind of services like personalised welcome and access to the VIP lounge, where customers will have a personal assistant to help them in shopping. They will also have access to a personal shopper – some of them speak Hindi and the majority speak in English! Everything is completely free. The main idea is for the shoppers to enjoy their time at Printemps,” he shares.
The story of Printemps started in 1865, so it is also a historical place of Paris with amazing views of the city, including the Eiffel Tour. “We have an office of our founder, which can be used for corporate meetings for up to 20 people. We also have an amazing venue that can accommodate up to 450 people for special cocktail evenings or events. So, corporates can book these venues and we also offer them a private invitation to be able to have this experience,” he adds.
Speaking about food, which is equally important for shoppers, Bernard says, “At the Printemps store we have 17 different restaurants spread in the three buildings, and some of them serve vegetarian and vegan food since it is popular in Paris. Moreover, we are focussed on our international clients, so if we know that vegetarian food is important for Indian visitors, we will have vegetarian options. We are also happy to offer shoppers a discount of 5 per cent as well as tax refund directly inside the shops. Their personal shoppers and assistants will take care of this.”
