Espresso cups tinkle on a marble table as
Franck Bonnet and Pierre Bonnefille talk
animatedly on the first floor of bespoke
eyewear brand Maison Bonnet’s Paris atelier.
Situated near Place des Victoires, the space –
a welcoming, polished salon in velvety dark
tones – opened in 2009 and was designed by
Bonnefille, one of France’s leading interior
architects. Now, the loquacious duo are
working together again on a new atelier
on London’s Stafford Street, set to open in
late June. ‘Around 60 per cent of my clients
are foreigners, and they come to Paris once
a year on holiday – but they find themselves
in London almost monthly for work, so it
made sense,’ explains Bonnet, the CEO andfourth-generation owner of the family
business. ‘It also made sense to continue
our collaboration with Pierre.’
The pair’s professional relationship is
anything but typical. ‘We have known each
other for about 20 years,’ says Bonnefille.
‘I do the maison’s interiors, and Franck does
my glasses. But we’re also friends.’ The duo
share a love for beautifully made objects
(like Bonnet’s father, Bonnefille is a Maître
d’Art, a title awarded by the French Ministry
of Culture to distinguished professionals
from the arts and crafts) as well as a passion
for good conversation, saying that it sparks
their creativity. ‘Conversation is everything
at Maison Bonnet. With new clients, we setup a meeting that can last up to two hours,
where we just talk about their tastes, their
work, their style icons, their dreams. We
need to get to know them as much as possible
to offer them the most personalised model
we can,’ says Bonnet.
Adds Bonnefille, ‘With my designs, I’m
just mimicking what Franck does: we meet
up and he tells me his vision. My job is to
give it material form, as an interior.’
In the case of the Stafford Street atelier,
that vision includes warm lighting, multiple
mirrors and bespoke furniture that nods
to Bonnefille’s Metamorphosis collection
(which, in turn, features forms inspired by
rocks and minerals, and texture courtesy of »Second sight
Paris eyewear brand Maison Bonnet launches a London atelier
with double vision and plenty of conversation pieces
PHOTOGRAPHY: THOMAS CHÉNÉ WRITER: MARTA REPRESA060 ∑