Published
September 15, 2025
Just a few days before the return of Paris Fashion Week, two Asian brands are signalling their French and global ambitions. Already established in the French capital, Icicle and Songzio, both listed on the official fashion week schedules, have opened new boutiques.
Façade of the new Icicle boutique – Icicle
Icicle, which will present its spring-summer 2026 collection on October 1, opened its fourth Parisian store on September 3. Beyond its flagship on Avenue Georges V, opened in 2019, this marks a genuine statement of intent from the brand founded in Shanghai in 1997 by Ye Shouzeng and Tao Xiaoma. Since 2013, the brand has maintained a dedicated design studio in Paris, where it explores its responsible approach, favouring natural materials and sustainable design.
The new store, which features a wide shopfront on the “most beautiful avenue in the world” and was previously occupied by Lancel, is located at 4 Rond-Point des Champs-Élysées, in a historic building dating from 1882. A location that, as the brand notes, is closely linked with major figures in French fashion.
“In 1924, Jeanne Lanvin set up her couture salons here, decorated by Armand-Albert Rateau. In May 1945, Carmen de Tommaso, known as Carven, founded her ready-to-wear house at 4/6 Rond-Point des Champs-Élysées. Today, the story continues with the Carven boutique at number 6 and the new Icicle boutique at number 4,” explained the Icicle group, which also owns Carven.
Interior of Icicle’s new Paris store – Icicle
This 180-square-metre space adds to the Rue Saint-Honoré boutique and the space at Le Bon Marché. On site, the brand showcases its various subtle, refined collections designed by artistic director Bénédicte Laloux. The store concept was devised by the brand’s in-house architecture department and, the label explains, reflects Icicle’s philosophy: simplicity, naturalness and timelessness.
“The central structure, made from natural oak, is designed using the age-old technique of Sǔn Mǎo, a traditional Chinese joinery art that involves assembling wood without nails, screws or glue. This know-how is based on an ingenious system of tenons and mortises inherited from traditional architecture, and demands precision, harmony and a deep understanding of the properties of wood. By reviving this age-old technique, Icicle has created refined, sustainable furniture that respects natural materials,” explained the brand, in a press release. “The walls and ceilings are plastered, the floor is waxed concrete, while the façade is painted wood. Some interior walls have deliberately been kept in their raw state, revealing traces of the former occupants’ history.”
The ICCF Garden concept, including Icicle and Carven, but also dining in Shanghai – ICCF
While expanding in Europe, the Icicle brand has no fewer than 242 points of sale in China, 85 of which are directly controlled, with a presence in around 100 cities, and last year joined the group’s ICCF Garden concept in Shanghai, where fashion and gastronomy interact.
The brand reported turnover of €293 million in 2024 and is aiming for 25% growth in 2025. In particular, it intends to continue its development with planned openings in the Changsha shopping centre and in the ultra-premium Shanghai IFC shopping centre, with a men’s boutique. The group also has a new ICCF Garden project scheduled to open before the end of the year in Hangzhou, the country’s twelfth-largest city, south of Shanghai.
Songzio expands its women’s offering
The South Korean label Songzio is also expanding its presence in Paris. For the brand, which was launched in 1993, Paris is not a new playground either. Back in the 2000s, Song Zio, then a young independent designer based in Seoul, forged ties with the French capital to develop his menswear universe. As a result, the brand appeared on the Paris Men’s Fashion Week calendar from 2006 to 2017.
Songzio Woman flagship opens at 10 rue Charlot – Songzio
After a thorough overhaul of its model, the brand, now headed by Jay Song, the founder’s son, has made the French capital a cornerstone of its international profile. The brand has been presenting its menswear collections since 2022, and even staged shows during both the January and June men’s fashion weeks. It accompanied this investment with the opening of a men’s store in December 2024, at 10 rue Charlot, in the Marais, Paris.
In September, the brand moved into the adjoining space to roll out its womenswear offering, unveiling a 150-square-metre space designed by Songzio that expresses the brand’s universe, blending traditional Eastern inspirations with contemporary cuts. The store is spread over two levels.
A 150-square-metre brutalist space – Songzio
“The space is distinguished by a radical neo-brutalist architecture blending raw concrete, black oak and sculptural furniture by Arno Declercq,” explained the brand, as it introduces the store concept. A place of contrast and emotion, it reflects the duality dear to the house: symmetry and asymmetry, light and darkness, curves and angles.”
The company, which now has 106 boutiques worldwide, also boasts around thirty retailers, including department stores in Asia, Europe and the United States. After recording sales of over US$70 million in 2024, the company aims to surpass the US$80 million mark (€68 million) in 2025.
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