PARIS — Biën, a Japanese beauty and lifestyle boutique, will open on Friday in the heart of Paris.
Step into the light-filled, streamlined store located at 10 Rue Casimir Delavigne, a stone’s throw from the Luxembourg Gardens, and a sense of peace descends.
On the right is a wall decorated with Japanese beauty products chosen by Keiko Suyama, who runs a consulting firm and has created Japan-related retail concepts for Le Bon Marché department store, where she opened the Bijo beauty and wellness bar, and the Maison de la Culture du Japan.
To the left, on the ground floor of Biën, delicate ceramics are displayed, while up a flight of stairs is a table set up for workshops and treatments, such as hand or head massages.
On the ground floor, in the center of the 755-square-foot retail space, is a bar made of Japanese cypress, where people can taste teas and receive personalized advice. Hanging from the ceiling is striking bulbous white lighting made of shirred fabrics treated with a tie-dye technique, without dye.
Biën sells beauty and lifestyle products.
Suyama co-founded the store with creative director Sadaharu Hoshino. His idea is to connect brands, artisans and artists, all united by an aesthetic sense of beauty.
Suyama explained that they would like people to “feel the true Japanese minimalist aesthetic” and “the beauty of use. we really want [have] some new experiences here.”
Well it’s a concept store. “We are also distributors and agents for small, niche beauty brands,” Suyama said. “Almost all brands are exclusive to us.”
Beauty products, clothing, groceries and other lifestyle products are sold here. Most of the offer is focused on beauty and wellness brands, which are a mix of artisanal and high-tech labels. The 25 worn by Biën have been chosen for how they reflect the Japanese sense of beauty. She places an emphasis on clean products, with formulas packed with natural ingredients, especially plants from Japan.
Some examples of them are Eau de Ki, a purifying and hydrating lotion dating from 1926; Ruhaku, billed as Okinawa’s first organic skincare brand, and Ipsum Alii, with formulas infused with Kampo medicinal herbs. Selected for their luxurious active ingredients are the Makanai and Cokon Lab gold leaf face masks, with products enriched with Yamaga silk. Suyama focused on Waphyto for its combination of ingredients selected by phytotherapy and biomethodology.
Biën’s beauty mix also includes a healthy quotient of tools, such as the Suwada artisan nail clippers, traditionally made Shaquda brushes from the end of the Edo period, and beauty rollers from Ya-Man and Slim Cera.
The textile collection was created by Hoshino, and will be expanded with exhibitions by Japanese artists and craftsmen, such as the creations of Hosoo from Kyoto. There are Japanese teas enriched with antioxidant plants, collagen beauty drinks and other snacks.
Biën’s lifestyle selection encompasses Kaikado tea pots and teaware from the Asahi Yaki house, which has been in business for 16 generations.
“I am very happy to work with these artisans because the new generation is around 40, 45 years old and they still continue to bring their heritage, but they are [also] trying to do something very new and [usable] in modern life,” Suyama said.
Exhibitions by various designers and artists will be on regular display in Biën, which could also house a beauty institute in the future.
The boutique is open Monday through Wednesday from noon to 6:30 p.m. by appointment only, then it is open to the public Thursday through Saturday from noon to 7 p.m.
Source: news.google.com