Each year in Paris, department stores decorate their windows with lively Christmas holiday displays. Le Bon Marché on rue de Sèvres (7th arrondissement) was the first store to decorate its windows, in 1909. The displays are as varied as the store interiors, and they often seem to attract more adults than children.
Candidate Number 1: Le Bon Marché
This year, Le Bon Marché’s windows are staged like mountain chalets. Their themes range from colorful displays of chocolate to carrots, knitting, and even dental hygiene. Le Bon Marché’s windows are the least commercial.
Spotted bunnies make candy treats in the “Merveilles de Bunny” shop. At the “Épicerie de Carottes” (grocery), bunnies make carrot juice and soup. Bunnies knit away, making bonnets for their long ears in “La Bonneterie des Oreilles.”
If you are looking for extra-long bristles on your toothbrush, look no further than “L’Officine des Dents.” The bunnies care for long and short teeth in the “Brossettes spécial dents longues” shop, with specialized brushes and demonstrations on how to use dental floss.
Candidate Number 2: Le Printemps
What first looked like a tourist promotion for New York is actually a celebration of Printemps’ first American store in New York. Earlier this year, Printemps opened its American store at One Wall Street. The theme is “Christmas in New York.” When I was there, these windows were the most popular on Boulevard Haussmann. Inside, there is even an oversized yellow taxi that two small children were having fun climbing into. Commercialization is almost non-existent.
Candidate Number 3: Galeries Lafayette
Galeries Lafayette’s theme this year is “Le Plus Beau des Cadeaux” – “The Most Beautiful Gift.” Images of their windows are limited in my video. Advertising plays a major role in each display, and it is difficult to find one that feels less commercial. However, I did find the least popular window: the Papi (grandfather) in pajamas. This window attracted no one, child or adult. Inside, the Christmas tree rising to the cupola is mediocre compared with past displays, even though it is spectacularly tall and bright.
And the winner is…
For the most original Christmas windows, the winner is Le Bon Marché. For attracting the most dancing adults in front of at least two windows: Le Bon Marché again. The windows drawing the most attention from both children and adults on Boulevard Haussmann are at Le Printemps. And the double “winner” for attracting the least attention to a window and for the most commercialized displays is Galeries Lafayette.
No matter what your taste, try all three distinct offerings—and Happy Holidays! and Visit the Paris Tourist office website “Paris je t’aime” for more activities.