Celine Brings French Riviera Flair to Shanghai With Zhangyuan Pop-up
Celine is bringing French Riviera summer to Shanghai with a five-week pop-up at Zhangyuan ahead of Michael Rider’s collection debut on July 6.
Open to the public from Sunday to May 11, the Parisian luxury house takes up an entire historic building and the courtyard in front of it in Zhangyuan, the Swire-backed historic Shikumen regeneration project, to create a space that reflects nostalgic memories of vacations spent on the French Riviera, namely the famous Place des Lices in Saint-Tropez.
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On Thursday, the brand hosted an opening reception. It was attended by global ambassador Liu Shishi, Sun Qian, Narana Erdyneeva, Dong Sicheng and Chen Zheyuan.
The event is aimed at promoting the Celine summer collection, which includes raffia baskets, small leather goods, ready-to-wear, accessories and lifestyle items featuring French summery decorative elements such as a triangle bag carrying three metal Pétanque balls.
The pop-up sees Celine transform the East-meet-West restored architectural gem into a two-floor space where the building’s original features blend with maritime-themed decor, with the retail offering surrounded by grid shelves, some covered with beige blinds, at the center.
On the ground floor, next to the retail space, there is a screening room airing a selection of French movies from the 1960s about the Riviera, including René Clément’s “Plein Soleil” starring Alain Delon, “La Baie des Anges” by Jacques Demy, and “La Piscine” by Jacques Deray.
Upstairs, visitors can dive into an immersive journey split across four rooms: dream, travel, feel and breeze, each showcasing an aspect of the Celine summer offering, which spans lifestyle, travel, sport and fragrances.
In the courtyard, there are three dedicated areas reflecting the brand’s take on a typical French summer.
There is a grove garden filled with various Mediterranean plants such as olive trees, lemon trees and lavender bushes. It surrounds a round fountain mounted by a giant sculpted Triomphe, the emblem of Celine, in a setting close to villages from Provence.
Next to the garden, there is a recreational area with its sand playground and an ice cream cart, serving flavors including lavender honey, figs, peach basil, as well as olive oil and lemon sorbet.
On the opposite side, there is an alfresco café lounge. The floor is laid in a chevron-patterned manner, and each of these two mirroring spaces is protected from the sun by bespoke wood sun shelters for guests to enjoy traditional South of France treats like Tarte tropézienne, Calissons d’Aix and Triomphe-shaped popsicles at ease.
Some of the furniture, from café seats to deck chairs and beach stools, are decorated with the Celine striped print, echoing the products available within the pop-up.
Celine is the latest LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton-controlled brand to host a pop-up in Zhangyuan. The building Celine now occupies what used to be a slow pop-up for Dior and Loro Piana. Louis Vuitton also uses a building within Zhangyuan as an appointment-only showroom for its Objets Nomades home range.
As a part of Shanghai’s West Nanjing Road commercial district, Zhangyuan is Shanghai’s first “protective urban regeneration project.” It is a joint venture between Shanghai Jing’an Real Estate Group and Hong Kong real estate company Swire Properties.
Formerly an entertainment venue and public garden in the late 1800s, Zhang Yuan later became a residential area until the government took over in 2018. The 645,800-square-foot Zhang Yuan is Shanghai’s largest Shikumen compound, with around 170 historic buildings in the Shanghainese and Western architectural styles.
Zhangyuan’s east section, which is still under construction and preservation, is planned to be launched by the end of 2026.
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