When a classic American-style drugstore—complete with a soda fountain and lunch counter—first opened in Paris in 1958, it was quite immediately declared the hippest place in town. Located on the corner of the Champs-Élysées and Rue de Presbourg, a block from the Arc de Triomphe, Le Drugstore (also called Drugstore Publicis) was an immense tribute to American consumerism and cuisine. Marcel Bleustein-Blanchet, French advertising maestro and founder of the Publicis agency, had recently returned to Paris after a period working on Madison Avenue. Captivated by “the city that never sleeps,” he wanted to bring some of that 24/7 energy to Paris. He discovered this concept one evening at midnight, in Manhattan in 1949: “I saw the light of a small shop (a drugstore ). I went in to ask for directions. In two minutes, I was able to buy a hamburger, a toothbrush, a newspaper and a pack of cigarettes. To get the same thing in Paris, I would have had to find a tobacconist, go into a café and give up the toothbrush, for lack of an open pharmacy…” He purchased the Hotel Astoria for several million dollars, locating the headquarters of his agency on the upper floors, while on ground level Bleustein-Blanchet sought to create a place that would “cater to a full-spectrum of consumer self-indulgence”—shopping, drinking, eating, music—bringing American convenience and bar culture to the Parisian public.
I am Slavik woman and carried out after his death the project of a book about his work which was completed in novembre 2021 : SLAVIK LES ANNÉES DRUGSTORE
How could I have lived in Paris for 2 years and not known this place? Although the Champs was hardly my stomping grounds, if I'd read this in 2010 it would have certainly spurred a visit!
I am Slavik woman and carried out after his death the project of a book about his work which was completed in novembre 2021 : SLAVIK LES ANNÉES DRUGSTORE
BRAVO FOR YOUR ARTICLE AND THANK YOU FOR HIM !
You're welcome! I have seen your book online - I hope to get a copy the next time I'm in France. It looks beautiful!
I love this, thank you so much!
How could I have lived in Paris for 2 years and not known this place? Although the Champs was hardly my stomping grounds, if I'd read this in 2010 it would have certainly spurred a visit!
Many thanks for the history.