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The Van der Bauwede Genève
boutique:
a sight for sore eyes
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Between place Vendôme and place de
l’Opéra, the new Van der Bauwede Genève boutique is a homage to the City of
Light and to the world-famous rue de la Paix. This astounding work of
architecture – both inside and out – was created by Roland De Leu, the “darling”
of luxury town houses, whose aim was to make a textbook case of 16, rue de la
Paix.
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There is
often a mutual attraction between designer and client, and this was certainly
true of Maxence Van der Bauwede, whose creativity in watch-making clearly stands
out from everything else the luxury horology market has to offer, and Roland De
Leu, whose impressive career may be summed up as follows: after graduating from
the Paris school of decorative arts, he worked for several firms before starting
his own business in 1980. With his graphic designer
friends he created the Sopha Design Group, leaving fifteen years later to
set up De Leu & Associés. His creations were to be exported throughout
the world – Christie’s (with Rena Dumas), Louis Féraud, Baccarat, Rochas,
Christian Dior, Celine, Sonia Rykiel, Mikimoto and Lanvin to mention but a
few.
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These luxury designers were attracted by the purity of the concepts De
Leu created for each brand, and it was in this same vein – along with the
opportunity to design in all of the major cities in the world – that he was
able to capture the inner spirit of Van der Bauwede Genève, who, in moving
to the prestigious rue de la Paix, had to ensure that his new venture was a
master stroke.
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When you cross the threshold of number 16, you will discover
dark wenge wood, fine leathers and frosted glass, three materials artfully
combined to ensure that customers feel they are moving through comfortable
airy spaces. The units in which the collections are displayed enhance every
single line and curve of the watches.
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