One month after being taken over by a portion of its management team, the BHV Marais unveiled this Monday, July 20, 2026, a revival plan for the department store in the 4th arrondissement of Paris. Two takeaways: 37 brands are signaling their return for the new season, and the ground floor will, in September, host Boulanger and Rougier & Plé, with two entrances reopening.
As you push open the doors of the store on Rue de Rivoli today, the atmosphere still feels like the end of an era. The floors have been cleared by half, and barriers block off certain sections, following a wave of brand departures.
The new chief executive, Karl-Stéphane Cottendin, Frédéric Merlin’s former right-hand man, vows a sharp break and a fresh chapter. The course is clear: home, DIY, decor and the art of living, at the expense of luxury and ultra-fast fashion.
That's the figure the management is highlighting: 37 brands have confirmed their comeback within a month. A signal that stands in contrast to the hemorrhage of recent months, when Dior or Sandro were shutting the door over unpaid bills or disagreements about Shein's arrival.
The press release lists several names, all from within the household:
The full list hasn’t been published yet, and the key thing to watch is the actual space these returns will occupy in September. Thirty-seven signatories won’t automatically fill entire floors.
Located on the sixth floor since November, Shein has become the focal point of tensions since its arrival and has sped up the departure of several brands. Talks described as constructive are underway to accelerate its exit, ahead of the contract’s planned end in 2027.
No firm date has been announced. We’re staying cautious: until the schedule is signed off, the sixth floor will remain occupied by its tenant, and that’s precisely what will determine when certain homes can return to use.
The arrival of Boulanger is far from incidental. The specialist in home appliances and multimedia is taking over the store’s most visible space—the area you pass through when entering from Rue de Rivoli, which until now housed the fashion and beauty corners.
The bet is understandable: this kind of offer drives daily traffic, where luxury once drew a rarer clientele. A Parisian replacing his vacuum on a Saturday morning is also someone who then heads back down to the basement for DIY—the DNA of the home.
Two entry points, accounting for roughly half of the entry traffic, are reopening as well. A detail that isn’t a detail, given how the current barriers deter even casual curiosity.
The other arrival is especially appealing, and it tells a charming Parisian tale. Rougier & Plé, a house founded in 1854, has set up its fine arts, graphic arts, and creative hobbies on the ground floor of the BHV.
Only two years separate the birth of the label in 1854 from that of the Bazar de l'Hôtel de Ville in 1856. Two shops in the same neighborhood, born almost contemporaneously, are finally under one roof. The historic Rougier & Plé store, on Boulevard des Filles-du-Calvaire opposite the Cirque d'Hiver, is about a ten-minute walk away.
We can expect to find the brand’s core offerings there: paints and brushes, graphic arts, creative stationery, framing, DIY, and activities for children. The lineup fits the company’s pivot toward home projects and fills a real gap in the market, where art-supply outlets have become increasingly scarce.
The management, which employs around 800 people, announces an employee shareholding plan that will allow teams to own 40% of the capital in the long term. Eric Lovisolo, former head of the Printemps group, also joins the executive committee.
Beyond the social dimension, the move aims to stabilise payroll costs and engage staff in the turnaround. By becoming co-owners, employees have a direct stake in the store’s profitability.
The situation remains unclear. Half of the premises have been cleared as part of an agreement with the Canadian fund Brookfield, the owner of the property since January 2026, but the tens of millions of euros promised in return have not been paid.
The landlord, for its part, cites compliance problems, according to a source close to the matter. The store remains in operation, the management says.
Opened in 1856, four years after Le Bon Marché, the Bazar de l'Hôtel de Ville remains one of the oldest shops in the capital. Founded on Rue de Rivoli by François-Xavier Ruel, it was renamed BHV Marais in 2013, and owes much of its fame to its legendary basement dedicated to DIY.
This anniversary, slated for October, is squarely in the sights of the new leadership, with the year-end festivities to follow. The store remains served by the Hôtel de Ville metro station (lines 1 and 11), and the product offering is updated on the official BHV site.
By September 2026, the range will still be partial and some floors will remain off-limits. So it’s wiser to wait for the back-to-school period for a specific department, and for now focus on the DIY basement, which remains open.
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