Snow globe, 12 euros; Limoges porcelain mug emblazoned with the Republican motto "Liberté-Egalité-Fraternité," 39 euros; tee-shirt emblazoned with the words "Enfant de la patrie," 59 euros. A Prévert inventory? These are just some of the 300 products – some kitsch, but all made in France – on sale at the store which opened on July 30 at 88, Rue du Faubourg-Saint-Honoré, just opposite the courtyard of the Elysée Palace.
Officially named Maison Elysée, this 600-square-meter space, which also includes a small museum dedicated to the presidential palace and a 40-seat café upstairs, aims to showcase the excellence of French manufacturing. According to the President's press release, the aim is also "to give every French citizen a behind-the-scenes look at a house that belongs to them by destination."
Fitted out by designer Sarah Lavoine in a former wedding dress boutique, the premises seem to give the impression of being an illusion, according to Franck Mérel, 58, from the Basque country: "You can really feel the spirit of the Elysée, even though I've never been there." At the heart of the exhibition, the desk created by cabinetmaker Charles Cressent in 1740 , and on which Charles de Gaulle and François Mitterrand, among others, worked, takes pride of place amidst a reconstruction of the gilded salon.
In the next room, the film in which host Stéphane Bern recounts, in six minutes, the history of the Hôtel d'Evreux from its construction in 1722 to the present day, attracts the few visitors. "Over and above the political history, you get a sense of the evolution of the building's architecture," said Guillaume Duflot, head of a secondary school in Amiens (department of Somme in northeastern France), who came to Paris with his 10-year-old daughter for the Olympic Games. "It's very educational, and we should be able to show this film in schools."
Presented as if in a cabinet of curiosities, the diplomatic gifts received by French head of state Macron offer a small tour of the world. From four wooden sculptures of women from Mozambique to a pair of cowboy spurs from Chile, and a teapot from Sri Lanka with an elephant in porcelain and 22-carat gold, there's something for everyone.
"Through the Elysée, a little bit of French history is being told here," said Brigitte, a retired pharmacist who didn't want to give her name. The only false note, in the eyes of this Parisian from the 17th arrondissement, was that: "The exhibition is in honor of the current president, so there are a lot of photos of him. Why don't we see photos of the other presidents of the Republic?"
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