Printemps to open its first new store in 32 years

French department store group Le Printemps will be opening the doors

of the newest store today, the first new opening in 32 years, located just a stone throw away from one of Paris cultural landmarks and the most visited museum in the world, in shopping center Carrousel de Louvre.

The store's new entrance is situated next to the Louvre museum entrance, as the group hopes that the store prime location will lure in a number of cultured tourists and help boost declining sales in its luxury department. The modest 2,500 square meter retail unit spread over two floors, is set to offer designer accessories, beauty products and leather goods on its main floor, with the upper level dedicated to luxury watch and jewelry units.

The new store is the first big project that Le Printemps has undertaken since the group was acquired by investment fund Divine Investments SA and is part of the group's ongoing strategy to increase the groups turnover. The group's new owners plan on investing 270 million euros over the next 5 years to increase turnover from 1.5 billion euros from the fiscal year which ended on March 31 to to 2 billion euros by 2017.

The refit of the existing location cost close to 25 million euros, as the building was renovated to add an additional floor, reported WWD. The luxury offering in the new store is a reflection of the Printemps flagship store on Boulevard Haussmann du Luxe department selection.

The store's refurbishment was created by architecture firm Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel and Partners, designed to reflect a similar atmosphere as the museum located next door. “We wanted for the customer to come in and feel they can circulate freely in the space. “We didn’t want to put any barriers,” said the group's CEO Paolo de Cesare to WWD.

The group also plans to open new stores in Marseilles later this year, as well as on in St Jean-de-Cannes on the French Rivera by 2015, and is looking into potentially expanding to other cities abroad in Europe, Asia and the Middle-East, providing that appropriate retail locations are found. "This is a big acceleration in our development. We are ready to open a few selected stores. We are very focused on finding great locations and great projects," de Cesare said to Reuters.