Published
September 1, 2026
From August 29 until October 18, Le Bon Marché Rive Gauche is changing its décor. For ‘Super Japon,’ the Parisian department store takes its cue from Japanese convenience stores (konbini), embracing their spirit of abundance and serendipitous detours: you go in with a specific errand, and rarely leave with exactly what you intended. Spanning several floors, the exhibition showcases a wealth of items from Japan, ranging from condiments to manga, stationery to clothing, kawaii to beauty products, not to mention design and tableware. This is everyday Japan, far removed from the postcard image, where discoveries are made chiefly as you wander the aisles.
Le Bon Marché Rive Gauche presents its ‘Super Japon’ exhibition – DR
The aim is less to tell the story of Japan than to let it be experienced through everyday uses. Here, there is no clear boundary between what falls under popular culture, craftsmanship, and the simple domestic object. A tin of biscuits might sit alongside a design piece, a vintage accessory next to a child’s toy. Le Bon Marché thus presents a multifaceted Japan, where you move from artisanal precision to kawaii whimsy without even changing floors.
In the grocery section, Irasshai rolls out part of its range, including condiments, broths, sauces, snacks, and ingredients imported directly from the archipelago. The selection is rounded off by Kinto, Kigura, and Kurabi, which bring familiar objects from the Japanese table into your cupboards. The same attention to everyday rituals is evident in the stationery aisle: Loft, a mainstay in Japan, lines up pens, notebooks, masking tapes and desk accessories. Modest objects, yet telling of a culture where daily use never rules out a taste for detail.
Travel souvenirs, meanwhile, take a less conventional turn. Ceramic Japan’s miniature sumo wrestlers sit alongside Tamiya model kits, Kamawanu’s furoshiki, Madame Mo’s koinobori, and creations by Paiheme. Koji adds another layer to the décor with a selection of vintage clothing and accessories sourced in Japan. A chance to bring back something from the archipelago other than a fridge magnet.
The ‘kawaii kids’ section strikes a very different mood. Monchhichi, Tamagotchi, Hello Kitty, and the Sanrio cast summon that Japanese pop culture which has long since crossed borders. An exclusive Hello Kitty & Friends x Care Bears collection, created with Le Bon Marché, even adds a dose of Western nostalgia to this distillation of Japanese culture. Chocolates, jigsaw puzzles, socks, caps, mugs, and bags- the kind of selection that slows down more than just the children.
Japanese fashion also appears in fragments. Tembea sets out its canvas bags alongside Edwin with its denim, Taion with its ultra-lightweight down jackets, Kamakura Shirts, and Blockhead Motors. For footwear, Tabi, Flower Mountain, and Asics complete the tour. There’s no off-the-peg Japanese silhouette here, more an assembly of pieces to pick up as you go, as you might fill a shopping basket. A shirt, a tote, a cap, a pair of socks- style takes shape with each find.
At Doki Doki, hand rolls and temaki are made to order, in full view of visitors – DR
Cuisine and beauty then step away from the shelves to become experiences in their own right, with workshops devoted to mochi and matcha. Bijo channels the Japanese drugstore, with skincare, lotions, masks and other J-Beauty essentials. At weekends, the counter turns into a treatment space offering skin diagnostics, scalp massages, facials, and manicures. On the ground floor, Aki Boulangerie offers another take on this Franco-Japanese encounter with melon pan and pastries made with matcha or red beans.
The Japan of ‘Super Japon’ does not stop at brands from the archipelago. In the homeware department, Nordic Knots, Frama, Køge Design, Jars, Le Jacquard Français, Debeaulieu, Maison Pechavy, Caravane, and Tréca extend this influence through materials, forms, and know-how. The kinship is less literal than it appears: it lies in a particular idea of the object, the sobriety of a line, the pleasure of a beautiful material, and the care for what accompanies the everyday.
Collaborations
Some collaborations give the itinerary a more event-driven edge. From October 13 to 18, Penelope’s Auction will hold a sale dedicated to Japanese fashion, bringing together rare pieces and sought-after designers around the themes of second-hand and circularity. Sœur, meanwhile, teams up with Shopu to present a selection of Japanese objects spanning craftsmanship, design and lifestyle. La Coque Française is also unveiling designs created especially for the exhibition.
And then there is Sacai. Founded in Tokyo in 1999 by Chitose Abe, the house has long made hybridity its field of expression. Here, tailoring meets sportswear, knitwear meets technical garments, and military references meet more conventional silhouettes. Nothing is quite left in its original state: pieces are shifted, layered, sometimes almost dismantled, then recomposed. Little wonder Sacai finds such a natural playground here.
For “Sacai TO GO,” conceived by Sarah Andelman, co-founder and former creative director of Colette, the house steps away from the wardrobe to focus on the table and what surrounds it. Toraya and Rocky’s Matcha will be present throughout, whilst weekends will see a roster of Paris addresses close to Sacai’s ecosystem take over: F.O.L.D.E.R.O.L, Iné, Benchy, NIWA, and Dreamin’ Man. The programme will evolve week by week, turning the space into a rendezvous rather than a simple counter.
A number of exclusive pieces will also be available: T-shirts, references to Sacai x Carhartt WIP, Zantan tote bags made from repurposed archive fabrics, and plush keyrings created with Peloqoon. With Ryvdoll, the house’s archives even shift to miniature scale, with certain silhouettes becoming magnetic paper dolls to move and recompose at will. It is a literal way of playing with the principle that has run through Chitose Abe’s work since the beginning: take several elements, remove them from their context, and see what they become once brought together.
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