Fauchon Hospitality, a newly established brand, extends the luxury ethos of gourmet food and delicatessen company Fauchon to the world of five-star hotels. Long synonymous with French cuisine, Fauchon is known to culinary fans around the globe, and it launched its first hotel in Paris in 2018. Kyoto, with its incredible cultural and culinary growth in recent years, seemed like a natural choice for the brand’s next location.

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Distinctly French, Authentically Kyoto

To create a cosmopolitan boutique hotel that blended the best of French and Japanese traditions, Fauchon Hospitality turned to Yasuhiro Koichi of Design Studio Spin, a Tokyo-based studio that specializes in hospitality spaces. Koichi’s vision for Fauchon’s first foray into the Eastern market would be distinctly French yet authentically Kyoto. To achieve this, he sought out the finest finishes, furnishings, and fixtures, including a full suite of products from Kohler.

That's where I saw this French gold. These products have something in between champagne gold and glittering gold. That's the kind of color it is. It is an exquisite color. It's the perfect match for this space.

_____Yasuhiro Koichi

When it came time to specify fixtures and finishes for the hundreds of guest bathrooms, Koichi wanted a trusted brand that was both innovative and storied in its history and manufacturing process. He also wanted a blend of classic French and modern design that would appeal to luxury travelers and age well while standing up to the demands of high-use hospitality space for decades to come.

With their eclectic aesthetic, KOHLER Margaux™ faucets provided the perfect detail in both form and finish, while rainheads and handshowers with Katalyst ™ air-induction technology ensure guests are bathed in a sanctuary of steam. Margaux bridges traditionalism and modernism by combining finely sculpted curves and edges with a thoroughly modern stance.

Thanks to the breadth of KOHLER finishes and the manufacturing technology that makes those finishes highly durable, Koichi and his team were able to select faucets, showerheads, and bathroom accessories finished in Vibrant ® French Gold, which complements the overall design theme of the hotel.

The Vibrant French Gold finish selected for KOHLER faucets and shower accessories offers a consistent visual language with the rest of the hotel’s design while bringing a long-lasting durability needed for high-use guest rooms.

From the ceilings and partitions to the upholstery and faucets, the hotel is infused with pink and gold—a design nod to Japanese and French cultural references, as well as the Fauchon brand colors.

Elegance in the Details

With hospitality design, elegance often resides in the details. Color is a central motif in the design: black, white, pink, and gold infuse the hotel with Japanese and French references, as well as the Fauchon brand colors. “‘Fauchon pink,’ which is seen in marketing and stores throughout the world, is a very vivid pink that is sometimes used in Western-style leather,” says Koichi. “Interestingly enough, it is also found in traditional Japanese kimonos. As a result, we used Fauchon pink in tandem with more subtle pink hues that closely matched cherry blossom blooms.”

From the onset, designer Yasuhiro Koichi sought to combine French and Japanese design into the Fauchon Hotel Kyoto, which is evident in the design concepts both large and small. The aesthetic is an exercise in contrasts. Soft pinks, neutral whites, rich black lacquered details, and gold accents carry through each guest room and public space.