Jean Paul Gaultier has turned Lafayette Anticipations in Paris into an immersive playground for La Favorite, its first major feminine fragrance launch in a decade.

The house opens the space to the public from Wednesday through Saturday, offering what it calls an olfactive journey inspired by the fragrance's heroine. Her name nods to the French royal court of the past: "la favorite," French for "the favorite," referred to the king's official mistress.

What can visitors actually do there?

Guests follow the heroine through a day in Paris across a series of staged sets:

• A tabac, or tobacconist shop, stocked with lighters, key chains and scratch cards.
• A Paris street modeled on the famed Junior Gaultier boutique on Rue du Jour, featuring a florist, a glove-maker and a chocolatier.
• A JPG club hidden behind a Morris column, designed by Sophie Dries in the spirit of Gaultier, where cocktails reinterpret the scent's three olfactory facets.

Lafayette Anticipations is Galeries Lafayette's art foundation, giving the beauty activation an institutional backdrop in the heart of the French capital.

Which notes drive the experience?

The street-set artisans channel the signature olfactive notes of La Favorite: Queen of the Night, benzoin and tonka bean. The same trio informs the cocktails served inside the JPG club, tying the drinks menu directly to the fragrance pyramid.

The launch carries weight for the house. A decade has passed since Gaultier last rolled out a major feminine fragrance, which positions La Favorite as a significant moment in the brand's beauty business rather than a routine flanker.

Is there more to come?

Yes. From Oct. 8 to 11, Jean Paul Gaultier will stage a second immersive La Favorite pop-up, this time on the Canopée des Halles terrace. The back-to-back activations suggest the house is betting on experiential retail to introduce the scent to Parisian consumers at scale.