Delvaux’s California Dream

BY MICHELLE DALTON TYREE

The storied Belgian leather goods house unveils its first West Coast Flagship at South Coast Plaza

April 15, 2025

In a beautiful marriage of Belgian craftsmanship and Californian insouciance, luxury’s oldest leather goods house has made its new home at luxury shopping center South Coast Plaza.

It’s the newest chapter in the house’s storied legacy, which began in Brussels in 1829. While it has been a purveyor to the Royal Court of Belgium since 1883, Delvaux made fashion history in 1908 when it lodged the first-ever patent for a women’s leather handbag — The Princesse — effectively inventing the modern luxury handbag. And it has been crafting exquisite pieces in its own workshops without interruption for nearly two centuries.

Despite its impressive pedigree and masterful craftsmanship that have made its pieces heirloom worthy, Delvaux’s charm is that it doesn’t take itself too seriously. The house is known for blending wit and artistry into its pieces, and that wink and sense of humor has garnered generations of ardent fans.

Take, for example, the house’s affinity for Surrealism and its longstanding relationship with the Magritte Foundation, based in Brussels. Some of the Belgian artist’s most famous artworks and humor have been incorporated into Delvaux designs. The iconic Magritte pipe image and phrase “Ceci n’est pas une pipe” (This is not a pipe) from The Treachery of Images painting appears on the Tempête bag; the apple from Les Jeunes Amours has been turned into the charming La Pomme Crossbody; and the handle on the chic Wavy bag drew its inspiration from The Philosopher’s Lamp. Delvaux even pokes a little fun at itself with the L’Humour bag that features a twist on the Magritte painting with script that reads “Ceci n’est pas un Delvaux.”

This relaxed elegance is also what has made it particularly well-suited for landing on Southern California’s glittering Golden Coast where clients take their luxury with a heaping dose of leisure.

The South Coast Plaza boutique was a passion project for Jean-Marc Loubier, CEO of Delvaux, who wanted it to be both welcoming and extraordinary. And, most importantly, he wanted it to be a metaphorical bridge between Belgium and California.

The marriage of luxury and leisure, indoor and outdoor is equally as evident in the boutique itself which features many Mid-Century Modern design and architectural elements and was designed in collaboration with Vudafieri-Saverino Partners, Milan.

The Delvaux façade showcases the brand’s own interpretation of brise-soleil, a classic Mid-Century architectural feature designed to block sunlight. Inside, gold mesh, burnished brass, white oak, alcantara velvet and Calacatta marble mingle harmoniously to create a lush backdrop for the detailed craftsmanship of the bags.

A rare Ettore Sottsass Cubica console with dreamy pastel tones harkens to 1950s California and is positioned in front of a 1960s gold metallic totem room divider. Fittingly, the piece was originally located in a Palm Springs mansion, but Loubier found it in Paris and decided to bring it back to California. Elizabeth Taylor, who had a holiday home in Palm Springs, also happens to be the inspiration behind Delvaux’s latest Caprice bag.

And, in the spirit of conviviality that pervades cafés and bars in Belgium and throughout Europe, The ‘Bar’ area inside the Delvaux boutique was designed to spark conversations among clients — albeit these “neighborhood” chats might lean more towards which delicious Le Cool Box hue to add to one’s collection.

But in an age where luxury increasingly risks homogenization, Delvaux offers a masterclass in maintaining heritage without sacrificing relevance. And at South Coast Plaza, it has crafted a destination where the past is not preserved but perpetually reimagined.