Christian Louboutin travel tips

A video in 2018 capturing Salif Gueye's gravity-defying performance of Michael Jackson's “Rock With You” at the Place Igor Stravinsky in Paris catapulted him to viral fame. Six years on, the street dancer has more than 5 million followers on Instagram and TikTok and has moonwalked in ad campaigns for Lacoste and Christian Louboutin. Home is Suresnes, a Paris suburb that feels like, as Gueye puts it, “a village where people live in solidarity with each other.” But he still spends plenty of time in the city, where he dances with friends and films his videos. In the lead-up to the Paris Olympics, Gueye shares his tips to get your heart racing in the French capital.

Christian Louboutin, the luxury shoe designer known for red-soled footwear, has acquired a stake in Experimental Group, a Paris-based hospitality company.

From Armani Hotels to Palazzo Versace, the fashion and hospitality worlds have long been amicable bedfellows. Last year alone saw the Christian Louboutin and Karl Lagerfeld brands open five-star properties—respectively, the Vermelho Hotel in Melides, Portugal and The Karl Lagerfeld Macau in China. Then there are the recent designer x hotel crossovers, such as the Fendi Beach Club at Puente Romano in Marbella, Spain; the Valentino takeover at Palazzo Avino, in Ravello, Italy and the Sir Paul Smith Suite at Brown’s Hotel in London, to name but a few.

For generations, designers have adopted towns, villages, and other enclaves as second homes and visited them again and again, imprinting a touch of their own sensibility on their chosen place—and importing something of its essence into their own work. It’s the kind of symbiosis that Coco Chanel and Le Corbusier, who summered in neighboring homes, enjoyed with the Cote d’Azur’s Rouquebrune Cap-Martine, or Yves Saint Laurent with Marrakech and Tangier. More recently, Christian Louboutin popularized the Portuguese village of Melides, eventually opening Vermelho Hotel there earlier this year. Here, five designers on the places they go, and why they continue to be pulled back.

Luxury hotel companies could flash a half-decent report card this year thanks to a post-pandemic surge in demand. But they could do better long-term if management teams sharpen their focus on opportunities to woo well-off consumers who increasingly care about experiences.