The Crown Prince of France - Chapter 102

Chapter 102: Paris Fashion Week

Though Lyon is the center of the French textile industry, this number is still shockingly high.

Aside from silk, France could still breathe with its high-end fashion, but other fabrics like cotton, wool, and linen are being utterly overwhelmed by British products.

This shows just how devastating the Eden Treaty was to French industry.

Joseph continued flipping through the materials, and indeed, the situation was just as he had expected. France's steel, glass, porcelain, and other industries were in disarray, and it looked like within a year or two, they would collapse completely.

No wonder France’s industrial revolution lagged behind Britain by a full half-century, and it never could catch up—though factors like the Great Disaster played a part, the Eden Treaty was undeniably a key player.

He immediately felt a tremendous sense of pressure.

He had managed to buy France three years of tariff barriers through some small tricks, but in three years, France would face an industrial showdown.

Right now, he had to solve the food problem and develop the industry, holding everything up by himself—how could he not feel the weight?

Moreover, food required money, and developing industry required even more money, but France's banks had invested all their funds in Britain...

Joseph sighed and looked out into the night. After all, it all came down to money.

He felt somewhat irritated, so he decided to go out and take a look at the Parisian nightscape, hoping to give his mind a break.

The cold wind outside hit his face, and it certainly made him feel much clearer-headed. But the sanitation in Paris was far worse than that of the Palace of Versailles. Even the wind carried a faint smell of excrement...

Luckily, unlike other French nobles, Joseph didn’t enjoy dousing himself in perfume. Otherwise, the overwhelming mix of perfume and waste would have been an unbearable assault on his nose.

Joseph adjusted his collar. Behind him, Eymond caught up in a few steps and draped a crimson woolen cloak over his shoulders.

“Oh, thank you very much.”

Joseph turned to thank him and suddenly noticed the towering, cold wall to his left.

He raised his gaze and, upon a closer look, realized that the wall extended far into the distance, disappearing into the night without an end in sight.

Joseph took another ten or so steps to the right and adjusted his angle, finally seeing the towering spires of the building behind the wall.

“What is that place?” He pointed to the spire and asked Eymond.

“Your Highness, that is the Tuileries Palace.”

Joseph blinked in surprise. No wonder this building was so extravagant—it was the old royal palace.

The Tuileries Palace had been the royal residence of King Henry III of France, but under the threat of the Parisian mobs and to better control the nobility, Louis XIV moved out and built the Palace of Versailles.

Thus, since the seventeenth century, the Tuileries Palace had been left unused. Historically, after the Great Disaster, Louis XVI was once again driven to the palace by the citizens of Paris and lived there for a time.

Suddenly, Joseph remembered the report he had seen a few days ago from the Paris City Hall, requesting funding from the Finance Minister for the autumn and winter fashion shows. He turned back to look at the Tuileries Palace, and an idea slowly formed in his mind.

As the fashion capital of Europe, France had held two fashion shows every year, one for spring and summer, and another for autumn and winter, starting from the reign of Louis XIV.

Throughout Europe, no one could deny Paris' leadership in fashion. After every show, new fashion trends would sweep across the continent.

From what Joseph understood, these so-called fashion shows were simply set in an exhibition hall, where famous designers showcased their works. Journalists and fashion industry insiders would comment and record.

Viewed from a later historical perspective, this was a complete waste of a good opportunity—a waste of the public’s attention!

It was essentially a wasted chance to make money!

The old royal palace in France could be repurposed for other uses.

For example, the Louvre was currently a royal museum.

Joseph walked briskly around the icy path of the Tuileries Palace, nodding to himself.

It had scale, it had grandeur, and it had a selling point.

With the right packaging, the Tuileries Palace—such a massive "IP"—along with the name of Paris as the fashion center, could easily be turned into a massive cash flow.

The palace had been sitting unused for over a hundred years—what a waste!

He began to think about how to maximize this profitable opportunity, and for a moment, the cold wind didn’t feel as biting.

“The name ‘Fashion Show’ lacks any gimmick,” Joseph muttered, shaking his head. But, as someone who had difficulty coming up with names, he eventually helplessly borrowed the name from his previous life, “Let’s call it ‘Paris Fashion Week.’”

Of course, just because it was called “Fashion Week” didn’t mean it would only last a week. Later, they could organize experience seasons, promotional weeks, gala events, and so on—he could easily stretch it to a month.

He pointed to the Tuileries Palace and turned to Eymond, “Eymond, do you know how many rooms are in this palace?”

“Uh... Your Highness, I’m afraid I’m not sure, but at least over 2,000 rooms.”

“Over 2,000? Not bad!” Joseph smiled, “The better rooms, let’s say around 700, can be rented out to merchants as shops, with rents ranging from 50 to 150 livres per month.”

After all, this was a royal palace—this rent was a fair price.

Joseph murmured to himself, “The remaining rooms can be rented cheaply or used as hotel rooms, renting for 3 to 10 livres a day.”

“For the halls, the monthly rent should be higher—let’s say 1,000 livres. We could also set up some billboards outside the palace and sell advertising space to merchants.”

“Hmm, we’ll need to find a spokesperson too. As for the fashion industry, I have the fashion icon of all of Europe right here, a symbol of luxury and elegance.”

He recalled how “Angel’s Water” had sold so well at the Palace of Versailles last time:

“Let’s ask the Queen—she should agree to be the ambassador for Fashion Week. Then, we can get the newspapers to run some ads, with a portrait of the Queen. Nobles from all over Europe will flock to Paris!”

“Hmm, also need to talk to some jewelry, shoes, and hat merchants about sponsorships. ‘Royal Exclusive,’ ‘Queen’s Choice,’ and so on—the Queen’s endorsement fee alone should bring in hundreds of thousands of livres!”

“Now, for the specific venue arrangements,” Joseph turned to Eymond again, “Where can I find a blueprint of the Tuileries Palace?”

“Your Highness, you may have to go to City Hall for that.”

Joseph sighed regretfully, “Looks like we’ll have to leave that for tomorrow.”

He took a deep breath. If he could prepare quickly, Fashion Week could be held this February.

Before that, he would contact textile merchants from Lyon, get them to bring their unsold stock, and sell it in Paris—he would recoup a lot of the costs.

If all went well, orders would definitely follow, and it could sustain Lyon's production for nearly half a year.

As for Paris, a large influx of foreigners during Fashion Week would generate considerable tourism revenue—hotels, food, transportation, and so on—truly a win-win!

The big shots might want to guess what Joseph would do first to push forward Paris Fashion Week...

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