Un Autre Monde ... MinaPoe Boutique, Paris

A real fashionista is like a curious explorer who always seeks to discover new uncharted territories. In the city of lights and love like Paris, there are many hidden treasures waiting to be unearthed.

Thus, the moment she walked out of her chic 8th arrondisement apartment and entered her black bullet proof Mercedes, it is neither the Galleries Lafayette nor the posh stores that neatly lined Avenue Montaigne she would head for. Instead, her destination would be the fabulous Rue Saint Honoré, where a new fashion wonderland called MinaPoe is located.

Founded by Mina D’Ornano, a former actress, screenwriter as well as director, MinaPoe is more than just a fashion boutique secretly tucked in between the bigger likes of Hermès or Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche, but it is also a couture brand well-known by rabid fashion connoisseurs. Inside her store is certainly another world to discover. Featuring an elaborately ornamented façade, which surely draws the attention of any fashionistas who pass by, the store is divided into two floors and boasts contemporary layout with wooden floorings and antiquated fixtures.

Well-edited selections of clothes and bags aside, the antique elements of the store is further enhanced with the presence of gilded chair and meticulously crafted Turkish ottoman that complement the gilded-framed large mirror and matching fixtures well (even the mannequin stand is gilded as well!)

Giving this eccentric yet unique boutique an air of sultriness and classiness are the posh crystal chandeliers hung on the high ceilings of the store. In other words, entering MinaPoe store is akin to entering the secret yet fashionable world of the owner herself.

Besides retailing her world-famous line of couture accessories, MinaPoe also carries a number of clothes designed with two important elements – the constant glamour of Elsa Schiaparelli and raw edginess of talented late Jimi Hendrix – in mind. How it happened? It all comes from her frustration of never been able to find what she wanted to wear.

Using inspiration and motivation as the key themes, the former actress/screenwriter and director graduated from Conservatoire National Supérieur d’Art Dramatique, she conceived fashion in her own interpretation.- some Bohemian splendour, a generous pinch of Parisian allure, plus spiritual alliance built between the two aforementioned aesthetic icons.

What’s more, so unique her creations are, they caught the attention of Saks Fifth Avenue and before you know it, MinaPoe has turned into a luxury household name among Saks shoppers, from New York’s glam-thirsty socialites to the super rich oil sheikhs’ wives of Riyadh.

So, if you’re looking for a lease of Parisian couture quirkiness and a new place to reinvent your style, then don’t forget to drop by MinaPoe at the über-chic Rue Saint Honoré.

*Photos courtesy of MinaPoe.

MinaPoe – 382, Rue Saint Honoré, 75001 Paris.