Teasing some legacy players

Openely competing with H&M, Zara, C&A et als, Japan's Uniqlo clothing retail chain comes to downtown Paris and right on the golden retail district where the major and best known stores are trading.

During the previous three weeks, Uniqlo, standing for Unique Clothing (http://www.uniqlo.com) rented the whole space of Opera subway station for the opening of the store on rue Scribe last week.

Now, it's turn to the escalators serving the main exit to rue Auber by leaving the regional express trains' station

Going up

and back.

In addition to its strategic location, and one of a few across Paris,
this particular set of escaletors is configurated the same as in either London or New York in setting advertisements. Uniqlo made sure to carpet every single square inch avialable.
Yet, two options are avialable.
First one can exit by entering a long established legacy department store
or

Keep actually going to rue Auber by taking another escalator which was not left bare either.

IInd District, Rue de Choiseul, Market comes in Town

Today, a small market pitches its marquees along Rue de Choiseul in 2nd district, or arrondissement. The offering is predominently made of regional food from Central and Southwestern France.

Ranging from pastry and confectionary

to this selection of ham and cheese from the farm

and regional gastronomy from Basque country

But not only, as

Pop corn, ornaments

Books going for almost a song, together with

VW Coxes, VW Combis, Chevy Impalas, Humvees, MD11s, 747s and more, although much scaled down to fit on the presentation tables !!!

Flying Since Before Airforces and Airlines Came to Exist

http://www.livre-aviation.com/upd/graphisme/page01.html

In business since 1900 as La Maison-du-Livre,
Initially focused in fine coffee table books
Started shifting to aviation in 1975
Then became Paris' top aviation bookshop
15,000 titles listed
But
Never changed the shop configuration, hence preserving its unique cachet.

RIP

"We regret to inform our faithful customers that Brentano's bookstore is in liquidation since Friday June 12th 2009 and is no longer trading.
Thank you for your support over the years,
the Brentano's staff"

http://www.brentanos.fr/

In business since 1895, the Paris-based American bookshop and newsagent has closed its doors for good. A real institution in distributing US publications locally is now being liquidated after its surrender to ever increasing rental costs and constent refusal from the landlords to renew the lease. Sad to seem them going under, and let's cross fingers WH Smith's Paris branch won't know a similar fate

The shop as it shows today

the Quest for original locations keeps going on by picking a market

which is not anymore a market. The gallery was completed during the 1930s and actually started as a fully fledged food market. But soon, well groomed shops took up the space as homemakers changed their buying habits. They include a bookshop, a jewelry, a bureau-de-change, an optician and a hairdresser and beauty parlor together with a trio of eateries. As with other galleries, most tenants have been around for a long, long time.

Enter there, the Longicorne bookshop fills a very strategic space.


Side shop windows are a real institution in either Germany or Switzerland. In France, they look to be an handful left. The bookshop is keen to show it uses one of them.

Live postcards from the 1930s, as much of the architectural style has been preserved.

Remap Europe by foot while in Downtown Paris !!!

Surrounding St Lazare railways station is a town section of which the streets are named upon the capital cities of Europe. So without the need of either getting on board a train or flying, one can reach Amsterdam, London and Madrid for instance, in a matter of minutes by foot.

Thanks for taking up this hypersonic trip from Amsterdam to London, no tricks.

A gaggle of pigeons calling somewhere in Rue d'Amsterdam. By observing them, one can understand why in french, the name of this bird also refers to dummies and gullible ones !!! Sorry, but I could not resist.

Formerly the HQ of a mineral water company, this ocean light green and blue tile walled building located in Rue de Londres (street of London) now houses a small Franco-Belgian electric company.

An appartment building at Rue de Londres

Behind the massive gate, more offices for small businesses and appartments

You just landed at Place d'Estienne d'Orves and the Trinity Church undergoing some lengthy restoration works without prior warning and let alone, proper short finals. Flight ends there, hope you enjoyed the ride.

IXth district, Passage Panorama

Located across the street on Boulevard de Montmartre from probably better known Passage Jouffroy, the Passage Panorama still doesn't diserve to be left out in the cold.

Especially should you are a stamp and advertising memorabilia avid collector.



Quite a few specialized antique dealers in both rule the shopping floor.