The new Maroquinerie de Louviers is a celebration of the artisanal excellence of Hermès. This production facility, the Parisian design house’s 21st and its second in Normandy after Val-de-Reuil, hosts approximately 260 artisans, all trained at the École Hermès des savoir-faire to create the label’s iconic handbags, and high-end harnesses and saddles. This is the first time that the saddlery division has been moved from Hermès’ historical headquarters in Rue Faubourg Saint Honoré.

Thierry Hermès set up his Parisian workshop specializing in harnesses in 1837. Today, his
descendants lead one of the most prestigious luxury design houses in the world, with a history that spans six generations and almost two centuries based around innovation in maintaining tradition. The design of the new facility, the work of Lina Ghotmeh, fully reflects both the label’s philosophy and the identity of the local area. Located in France’s Eure Department, the city of Louviers has been important throughout Europe for fabric production since the Middle Ages.

 

A tribute to the legendary Hermès scarf

Built with timber framing and 500,000 locally produced bricks, Maroquinerie de Louviers is a
production facility dedicated to creativity and innovation. With 66,700 m² of floorspace, the building has a square plan based on the shape of the Hermès carré, the iconic silk scarf that’s been worn by the likes of Audrey Hepburn, Brigitte Bardot, and Grace Kelly. Arches of different sizes open along the exposed brick façades, following one another with a relentless pace like galloping horses.

The production areas are organized around a central space, dubbed the Place du Village, where the different functions of the production hub converge. Designed for welcoming visitors to the facility, this covered interior courtyard also houses a work of art created by sculptor Emmanuel Saulnier for the site.

 

>>> Discover also the residential tower Stone Garden in Beirut, designed by Lina Ghotmeh too

 

A sustainable production facility

Designed to meet the criteria of bioclimatic architecture and to be energy self-sufficient, the facility has ample natural light and ventilation inside. It’s also powered by renewable sources, including 13 geothermal probes that reach a depth of 150 m, over 25,000 m² of solar panels, and a rainwater recovery system. With its high levels of environmental sustainability, the Maroquinerie de Louviers is the first industrial building in France to achieve a rating of E₄C₂ on the E+C- scale, which assesses the performance of new buildings in terms of energy and their carbon footprint.

The garden surrounding the complex, designed by Belgian landscape architect Erik Dhont, is
intended to preserve the biodiversity of the site. Covering an area of over 3 ha, the garden reuses land excavated during construction, and is home to numerous established and newly planted trees.

 

Lina Ghotmeh's words

“Through this project, I wanted to upgrade an abandoned industrial area. Surrounded by nature and extraordinary hillsides, the site remains magnificent and I think that you have to sublimate the beauty in a place when you build. Through the design of this manufacture, I try to propose an architecture, a timeless semantics to a place of production. You can think of it as a museum, a cultural center, a residence or a factory, the main thing for me is that its architecture be virtuous and that it emanates from the beautiful, that it can relate to its environment, and especially the history of the Hermès house, which settled there. It is essential that it is appropriate, that we feel good in it”.