About
Beaubien was an independent, multibrand store dedicated to quality casual menswear. It operated in Paris and online for more than 11 years, from April 2013 to November 2024.
Beaubien was founded and fully managed by me (Julien Bouzereau), taking care of all dimensions of the business, not only including buying but also customer service, merchandising, communication and everything financial.
Whether you call it a concept store, a select shop or a multibrand boutique it constantly offered a carefully curated selection of menswear labels.
The physical store opened its door in April 2013 and was located 21 rue Notre-Dame-de-Nazareth (3rd arrondissement), in the heart of the French capital, a stone’s throw from the iconic Place de la Republique, and nestled in a typical Parisian tree-lined street with its old buildings.
Launched in March 2014 the webstore made the whole selection (including pieces from previous collections in an “Outlet” section) available to a worldwide audience and quickly became an important part of the business, representing a third of the turnover with 60% of the orders placed from abroad. Its simple, clean design reflected the “focus on the products” store philosophy.
Beaubien was featured in many French and international publications, including Monocle, Le Figaro, Time Out Paris, Louis Vuitton City Guide Paris, GQ France.
It would be unfair not to say that Beaubien achieved the initial goal of becoming a welcoming one-stop shop with a well curated selection of inspiring goods and cool brands. The store appealed to a highly demanding and informed international clientele of local customers and tourists - whose purchases made 40% of the turnover.
I did my best to offer a helpful and personalised premium service in a friendly atmosphere, which was in line with the human scale of the shop. The loyal community of customers has often been the source of inspiring conversations, which are probably what I miss the most from the days spent at the store.
More than eleven years after making the idea of opening Beaubien a reality, I decided to put the business on hold. The physical store closed its doors in July 2024 and the online store in November 2024 following a clearance sale.
My passion for quality clothing, and more generally a meaningful lifestyle, obviously remains intact.
Why the name “Beaubien”?
Named after a station of the Montreal subway, the name "Beaubien" has strong urban roots: the store itself was located at the heart of a bustling metropolis, it also refers to a passion for big cities, and products sold at Beaubien were selected to meet all needs of everyday city life.
In French "beau" meaning "nice" and "bien" meaning "good", the name also carries a naive simplicity, referring to the idea of just sourcing, selecting and selling great products – retail at its best, I think.
The name is also a reference to beloved and inspiring Japan, many Japanese companies surprisingly taking a mix of two French words as a brand name, which most of the time sounds very naive to French ears. "Beaubien" should have something of this old-fashioned charm.
Also the name could be a gimmick easy to remember, and a name you have to think twice to get what makes its uniqueness, same as products and brands sold at Beaubien.