Luxury French shoe designer Christian Louboutin has acquired a stake in Paris-based hospitality company, Experimental Group. Louboutin, famed for the iconic red-soled shoes, is the latest shareholder in Experimental Group, joining investors Jean Moueix and Brookfield Asset Management.
The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The development comes ahead of Experimental Group’s planned expansion in the U.S. The company debuted in the U.S. earlier this year, with the opening of a wine bar, La Compagnie des Vins Surnaturels Centre St. in New York, according to a news report.
Louboutin’s global reputation, multidisciplinary artistic collaborations and creativity will help support Experimental Group’s development, the report quoted Oliver Bon, Experimental Group’s co-founder and partner, as saying.
Founded by three childhood friends — Bon, Pierre-Charles Cros and Romée De Goriainoff — the group has hotels, speakeasies, wine bars and restaurants in Paris, New York, London, Ibiza, Menorca, Venice and Verbier. The friends opened their first Experimental Cocktail Club in 2007 along a small street in Paris and grew its team in 2010 to add its fourth partner, Xavier Padovani.
The group operates 20 hotels, bars and restaurants, including 10 hotels in Europe, six cocktail club bars and two beach clubs. In 2021, Brookfield Asset Management invested €350 million in Experimental Group, according to a report. The group will be opening more hotels in Val d’Isère, Rome and Paris in 2025 and two bars in New York.
The move marks Louboutin’s second foray into the hospitality sector. The fashion designer opened its first hotel in Melides, Portugal in December 2023. The 13-room boutique, luxury hotel has been designed by Louboutin and features a spa, bar and a restaurant; with touches of his signature red on the furniture, tiles and doorways.
Luxury fashion houses have been venturing into hospitality, combining their signature design elements with bespoke travel experiences. French luxury conglomerate LVMH tied up with Accor in June to accelerate the development of the Orient Express brand and speed up its revival. While Bulgari has a dazzling collection of nine ultra-luxury hotels around the world, Dubai alone is host to several hotels by fashion brands — The Armani Hotel, Burj Khalifa, Bulgari Resort, Dubai and Palazzo Versace Dubai. Meanwhile, Louis Vuitton is rumored to open a hotel in Paris in 2026.