SOPHIE HICKS ARCHITECTS

A pioneer in luxury boutique architecture, the British architect has worked for Alaïa, Paul Smith, Chloé, Givenchy, Thierry Mugler, Acne Studios… and most recently for Max Mara.

It is the only thing you see in the window of the newly redesigned Max Mara boutique on Avenue Montaigne: a monumental spiral staircase featuring a central double helix in orange. “It’s a structural sculpture that catches the eye from the street; it acts like a magnet to draw customers in,” says Sophie Hicks, who led the renovation. “It’s orange because orange is camel on acid, isn’t it? My vision for Max Mara was to play with camel—their signature color—and to simplify and open up their corner location on the avenue, while breathing fresh life into the store in a harmonious, simple way.”
Minimal, even—a word that frequently comes up when describing the style of this luxury retail specialist. With her short hair, a small ponytail at the nape of her neck, a mischievous gaze, and a forthright manner, Sophie Hicks exudes the kind of free-spirited attitude typical of the 1980s fashion crowd. In fact, she started out in women’s magazines. “I answered an ad in *Harpers & Queen* looking for teenagers to help put together an issue. I was given a few fashion features to lay out. I went on to work as a fashion editor at British *Vogue* and *Tatler* during their heyday, before working with Azzedine Alaïa on staging his runway shows and collaborating with him on a book.”