Paris' Centre Commercial Parly 2

A rendering of the original PARLY 2 ["Par-lee duh"]. It was the first mall in -or around- Paris and the third in France. The dual-level, dual-anchor facility covered around 712,500 leasable square feet and housed 100 stores. It opened for business in November 1969. 
Drawing from https://cloud10.todocoleccion.online

France's first mall was built in the western suburbs of Lille. AUCHON ENGLOS ["Oo-shah on-glo"] was a fully-enclosed, single-level facility of approximately 250,000 leasable square feet and thirty stores. Anchored by an Auchon hypermart, the shopping hub opened its doors in March 1969.

Graphic from https://englos.aushopping.com/fr / Aushopping Englos Les Geants

Next in line was CAP 3000 ["Cap twah-meen"]. Built in the southwest environs of Nice, the mall was fully-enclosed, with 2 shopping levels. In its original state, CAP 3000 encompassed approximately 700,200 leasable square feet and fifty-two stores. It included a cinema and rooftop swimming pool. The official grand opening was held in October 1969.

Graphic from https://en.cap3000.com/fr / CAP Cote D'Azur

In this circa-1966 graphic, we see the original name of a prospective west side residential development. It was to be known as "PARIS 2." This incited the ire of Parisian politicians, who threatened to initiate legal action. By the way, the slogan at the top translates to "A City Is Born."
Graphic from http://www.parly2.com / "La Lettre du Parly 2" / June 2006

The name of the planned community was quickly changed to PARLY 2. This was an amalgamation of PAR (taken from "Paris") and LY (from Foret de Marly, an adjacent forest).
Graphic from http://www.parly2.com / "La Lettre du Parly 2" / October 1987

CENTRE COMMERCIAL PARLY 2 was the primary business district of the newly-created PARLY 2 development. The mall was described as "unashamedly American." Its decor was done in a flashy, Deco Avante-Garde motif. Interior spaces were lavishly appointed with marble and mahogany finishes.
Photo from http://danielkrief.com/project.php / Daniel Krief & Associates

PARLY 2 originally housed two "grand magasins" (department stores). The largest of these, Paris-based Au Printemps ["ahh prin-tom"], commenced operation in 1865. Today, there are nineteen full-line locations in France and one international store in Doha Qatar. A New York City branch will open in the spring of 2025. The chain's circa-1969 logo is seen at the top, with that of the present day shown below it.
Graphics from http://departmentstoreparis.printemps.com / Printemps

A plan of the original PARLY 2. It was situated on 2 floors; Niveau Bas (lower level) and Niveau Haut (upper level). The two anchor stores had 3 floors. Of particular interest is a twin movie theater, which was situated in a lower level of the parking area...giving special meaning to the term "underground cinema."

The mall was co-anchored by Paris-based Bazar de l'Hôtel de Ville, or BHV ["Bee-ash-vee"]. The "hotel" reference derives from the location of the Paris mother store, which sits across the street from the Hôtel de Ville. In the 2010s, BHV operated four stores in France, with three international branches (two in Lebanon and another in Dubai). In the 2020s, there were two Lebananese locations, one in Dubai and two in France. The first trademark dates to 1969, the second was introduced in 1974. The third debuted in 2017.

Graphics from http://www.bhv.fr / Bazar de l'Hotel de Ville

PARLY 2 was expanded with a South Wing in 1986-'87. The extension (in medium gray) incorporated eighty-seven stores and added 2,000 parking spaces; these provided in garages and decks situated below -and on top of- a new Y-shaped shopping concourse. The centre commercial now consisted of 3 floors -Niveaux 1, 2 and 3- and encompassed approximately 1,151,700 leasable square feet.

In this interior view, we see a section of the newly-expanded PARLY 2. Some of the stores that opened as part of the South Wing extension were Habitat (home furnishings), La Fruiterie, Compagnie du Californie (ladies' wear), Bayard (men's wear) and a branch of Great Britain's Marks & Spencer. 
Photo from https://parly2-extension.fr / Projet-extension / Westfield Parly 2

In this aerial view of the shopping hub, its '80s expansion wing appears in the upper right of the image.
Photo from https://ingridnc.files.wordpress.com  

Based in a suburb of Paris, the Fédération Nationale d’Achats des Cadres, or fnac ["fnak"], began business in 1954. A PARLY 2 store was dedicated in 1987. The chain sells electronics, cds, books and other accessories. In the mid-2020s, there were 203 Fnac locations France, Andorra, Belgium, Luxembourg, Tunisia, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland and Morocco, Qatar, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, and Congo. The chain merged with Darty in July 2016.
Graphic from http://www.fnac.com / Fédération Nationale d’Achats des Cadres 

The Darty retail empire began in 1957, in Montreuil, France. The chain sells household appliances and electronics. In the mid-2020s, there were 294 stores.

Graphic from https://www.fnacdarty.com / Darty Limited

Based in Lisses, France, the chain of Truffaut "jardineries" (or garden centers) traces its origins back to 1824. Like C & A and fnac, Truffaut ["Troo-foh"] opened a PARLY 2 location as part of the 1987 expansion. In the mid-2020s, there were sixty-five operational stores in France.
Graphic from https://www.truffaut.com / Jardineries Truffault         

The "supermarche" (supermarket) on the west end of PARLY 2 has gone through five incarnations since opening in late 1969. The store was originally branded as Suma, a chain which had originated in 1960.
Graphic from http://www.archi-wiki.org / Suma (supermarche)

In 1995, the store was rebranded under the ATAC nameplate.
Graphic from http://www.atac.fr / The Auchan Group

In 2009, the store was given its second name change. It would be known, henceforth, as Simply Market, a chain owned and operated by Auchan Retail, based in Croix, France. 

Graphic from http://www.groupe-auchan.com / The Auchan Group

During 2015, the supermarche at Parly 2 was renovated, transforming it to a more upscale, "gourmet" format. The store's new nameplate -its fourth- now read Simply Market Gourmand. 

Graphic from http://www.groupe-auchan.com / The Auchan Group

In 2018, a fifth nameplate was installed at the PARLY 2 store. The Auchan company consolidated all of its grocery divisions under the Auchan banner.

Graphic from http://www.groupe-auchan.com / The Auchan Group

The store at the east end of the original PARLY 2 opened as a Prisunic ["Pree-soo-neek"]. Although the word "prisunic" translates in English to "dime store" or "variety store", a Prisunic wouldn't have been like a traditional American Woolworth or Kresge. Granted, there were lines of apparel, housewares and hardware. However, Prisunic stores also included a supermarket. The chain's 1960s "target" trademark is seen above.
Graphic from "Prisunic Design"

Here, we have a more contemporary Prisunic trademark. The chain, a discount division of Printemps, was known for its lines of high-fashion apparel and stylish "mod" furniture. It merged with a competing chain in 1997, with all stores eventually being rebranded under the Monoprix nameplate.

Graphic from Société Française des Magasins à Prix Uniques

Monoprix ["Mono-pree"] operations are similar to former Prisunic stores, although those of the Monoprix brand are more grocery-centric. The chain, headquartered in Hauts-de-Seine, a northwestern Paris suburb, operates 449 stores in France.
Graphic from http://www.monoprix.fr / Groupe Casino

This PARLY 2 trademark debuted in 2007. The slogan along the bottom translates directly to "the west coast spirit." Being as how the mall, Paris -nor any of its suburbs- are anywhere near a sea shore, one must conclude that something is lost in the translation. Suffice to say, the literal meaning would be more along the lines of "spirit of the west side (of Paris)."
Graphic from www.parly2.com 

This logo was introduced in 2010. The mall's location, in the Le Chesnay ["Luh shuh-nay"] commune, is mentioned at the bottom of the image. In France, a "commune" is similar to an incorporated city in the United States.
Graphic from www.parly2.com 

A comprehensive renovation got underway in 2010. Conducted in five stages, it refurbished the interior of the 1969 mall, expanded, renovated and replaced various parking garages, remodeled the interior of the 1987 mall and -among other things- added a new west side parking structure. 
Drawing from www.parly2.com  

Here, shoppers stroll on a rooftop parking deck. An entrance to "Luxembourg" is seen in the background. Luxembourg ["Lewk-sahm-bor"] is a name given to a section of the circa-1987 South Wing. Other areas of PARLY 2 are known as Concorde, Opera, Vendome, Etoile, Notre-Dame, Madeleine, Saint-Germain, Tuileries, Pont Neuf, Pont des Arts and Saint-Michel. These were named after fashionable districts in Paris.
Drawing from www.parly2.com  

Speaking of fashionable, here is a post-renovation view of the Pont des Arts ["Pohn day zar"] shopping concourse. 
Drawing from www.parly2.com  

Above, we see more results of the 200 million Euro mall makeover. This is the Saint-Michel ["San Mee-shel"] section of the shopping facility. The mall "entree" of the Truffaut garden center is seen on the left.
Drawing from www.parly2.com  

The PARLY 2 mall has been a Unibail-Rodamco holding since 2007. As a result of the merger with Australia's Westfield, in June 2018, the official name of the shopping hub was changed to WESTFIELD PARLY 2 in September 2019.

Graphic from Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield 

A circa-2022 plan shows results of the 2010s renovation. A parking deck has been built south of Printemps. The Pont Neuf ["Pohn Nuff"] addition (in dark gray) extends the east side of the complex into a "loop mall." This enlarges WESTFIELD PARLY 2 to approximately 1,259,300 leasable square feet. There are 190 shops and services and parking for 4,600 autos.

WESTFIELD PARLY 2 TENANTS 2022:

BHV MARAIS (with Starbucks cafe) / FNAC music, electronics and books / KIABI apparel and accessories / MONOPRIX supermarket and variety store / PRINTEMPS (with Bigot Versailles bakery, Pierre Herme pastry shop, L'Atelier du Sourcil eyebrow workshop, Guerlain Boutique spa and styling salon) / TRUFFAUT garden center / 5asec dry cleaners / Abercrombie & Fitch apparel / Adidas sportswear / Aesop cosmetics (kiosk) / Aigle bootery / Alain Affelou eyewear / AlterSmoke vaping accessories / Andre footwear / Apple Store / Armand Thiery Homme men's wear / Asics Imoveme health club / Atelier de Famille jewelers / Auchan Goumand supermarket / Audio Por Tous hearing aid center / BA & SH ladies' wear / Balabooste jewellers / Bensimon Concept Store / Bexley men's footwear / Bleu Libellule cosmetics / BoConcept Danish furniture / Body'Minute spa / Boucheries Nivernaises butchers / Boulanger household appliance, electronics, mobile phone and multimedia / Bouygues mobile phones and accessories / Brioche Doree French cuisine / Burton apparel / CPH Immobilier real estate brokers / Cabaia accessories / Cafe Cotton men's shirts / Cake Kitchen fitted kitchens / Calzedonia apparel / Caroll ladies' wear / Catimini children's wear / Celio men's wear / Christofle Paris goldsmiths / Claudie Pierlot ladies' wear / Cleor jewellers / Coiffure Dessange / Comptoir des Cotonniers ladies' wear / Comtesse Du Barry gourmet delicatessen / Cosmoparis footwear and accessories / Courir footwear / Coyote road alerts and navigation equipment / Cyrillus apparel & accessories / Darjeeling lingerie / Darty home appliances and electronics/ Decathalon sporting goods / Dessange hair stylists / Dior perfumes / Du Bruit Dans Cuisine kitchenware / Dyson home maintenance / Eram apparel and accessories / Etam ladies' ready-to-wear / Etam lingerie / Father & Sons men's wear / Figaret-Paris shirts / Finsbury men's footwear / Foot Locker / Forever Flawless cosmetics (kiosk) / Franck Provost hair stylists / Free mobile phones and accessories / Fusalp ladies' wear / Generale d'Optique eyewear / Geox Respire footwear / Gerard Darel ladies' wear / Go Sport sports store / Guerin Joaillerie (jewelry) / GrandeOptical / Habitat furniture and home accessories / HEMA  housewares / Historie d'Or jewellers / Hollister teen apparel / Hugo-Boss ladies' wear / Ills apparel / Ikks Junior apparel / Intimissimi lingerie / Izac men's wear / Jacadi toys and children's wear / Jacques Blanchon florist / Jean-Louis David hair salon / Jeff of Bruges chocolatier / Jimmy Fairly eyewear / Jott apparel and accessories / Jules men's wear / Kookai ladies' wear / Kujten cashmeres / K-Way jackets / La Ferme Saint Hubert cheeseand dairy products / La Fruiterie fruits and vegetables / La Grande Recre toys and games / La Maison du Chocolate (kiosk) / Lacoste sportswear / Lancel ladies' wear / Laura Todd cookies (kiosk) / Lavoisier Workshop jewellers / Les Maneges Ravoire children's play area / Les Opticiens Conseils eyewear / Lenotre baked goods and ice cream / Levi's Store / Lindt candies / Livy ladies' wear / L'Occitane en Provence cosmetics / Louis Pion watches / Lush cosmetics / McDonald's hamburgers / Madura linens and window dressings / Maison 123 ladies' wear / Maison du Monde furniture and home accessories / Maje Paris ladies' wear / Manfield footwear / Mango lasies' wear / Marc Orion jewellers / Marlette cafe-boutique (kiosk) / Mauboussin jewellers / Minelli ladies' footwear / Mister Minit shoemaking and locksmithing (kiosk) / Montre Service watches (kiosk) / Morgan ladies' wear / Nature Decouvertes toys and accessories / Nespresso coffee bar / New Balance footwear and accessories / Nicholas wine shop / Nin & Laur ladies' wear / Nocibe cosmetics / Nodus men's wear / Noura Lebanese cuisine / Nouvelle Boutique / Obi Obi accessories / Okaidi children's wear / Oliviers & Company olive oils / Optic 2000 eyewear / Orange mobile phones and accessories / Pablo apparel / Palais des Thes tea shop / Pandora jewelry / Peas & Love vegetable farm / Petite Bateay children's wear / Pharmacie / Pizza del Arte / Pimkie ladies' wear / Polo Ralph Lauren men's wear / Pooow! jewelry and accessories / Princess Tam Tam ladies' wear / Promod ladies' wear / Pylones gifts / Renato Belli men's wear / Retoucherie / tailors / Rituals cosmetics / SFR Space telecommunications / Saint Algue beauty salon / Sanmarina apparel / Sandro ladies' wear / Sephora cosmetics / Snipes apparel and footwear / Swarovsky jewelry / Swatch Swiss-made watches / Tabac tobacconist / Tempka jewelry and accessories / The Barber Company / The Body Shop cosmetics / The Kase mobile phone accessories (kiosk) / The Kooples ladies' wear / Tommy Hilfiger apparel / Ugo Bacci ladies' wear / UGC Cine' Cite' Parly [12 screens] (outparcel) / Undiz lingerie / Uniqlo  apparel / Venghour Asian cuisine / Victor Victoria ladies' wear and accessories / Vive la France French-made products / Waffle Factory (kiosk) / Yves Rocher natural cosmetics / Zadig & Voltaire apparel and accessories / Zapa ladies' wear / Zara apparel / Zara Home

PORTE SAINT-GERMAIN FOOD COURT:

Alto Cafe / Arido Japanese cuisine / Ellis Gourmet Burgers / L'Atelier Artisan Crepier restaurant / Paul Boulangerie bakery / Pitaya Thai cuisine / Poke House / Venghour Asian cuisine / Voy restaurant and wine bar

The final facet of the 2010s mall renovation replaced an outdated 5-plex with a state-of-the-art 12-screen venue. The UGC Cine' Cite' Parly welcomed first patrons in June 2019.

Photo from https://www.ugc.fr / The UGC Group

CENTRE COMMERCIAL PARLY 2
Avenue du Charles du Gaulle and Route du St.-Germaine
Commune of Le Chesnay (Department of Yvelines), France

One of the first United States-style shopping malls on the continent of Europe was built on a 50-acre plot, situated 10.3 miles southwest of centre city Paris, in the commune of Le Chesnay ["Luh shuh-nay"]. The retail hub was a component of a 7,500-unit development, known as Parly 2, which was built between 1967 and 1978. The mall's tentative name, Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, had been changed to PARLY 2 by the time of its completion.

Envisaged by Robert de Balkany and Jean-Louis Solal, the PARLY 2 development and shopping complex were built under the auspices of La Societe des Centres Commerciaux (SCC), of Paris. The mall was designed by New York City's Lathrop Douglass and Paris' Claude Balick. Douglass had conceptualized several iconic malls in the United States. A listing would include Yonkers, New York's CROSS COUNTY CENTER (1954), Montgomery County, Maryland's WHEATON PLAZA (1960) and Fairfax County, Virginia's TYSONS CORNER CENTER (1968).

CENTRE COMMERCIAL PARLY 2 was officially dedicated on November 4, 1969. Attending the grand opening ceremony were local politicians, such as Jean-Paul Palewski, and fashion designer Coco Chanel. The mall was a fully-enclosed structure of approximately 712,500 leasable square feet. There were two anchor department stores; a 3-level (143,500 square foot), Paris-based Au Printemps and 3-level (108,500 square foot), Paris-based Bazar de l'Hotel de Ville, a.k.a. BHV.

Among the 100 charter tenants were Christian Dior, Jourdan, Lanvin, Lenotre, Hediard, Nivernaise Butchers, Miss Franc and a Publicis drug store. Junior anchors were a 1-level (22,000 square foot) Suma supermarket and 2-level (43,600 square foot) Prisunic variety store and grocery. There was also 55,000 square feet of leased office space on an upper floor.

The 2-level shopping concourse was done in a late '60s Deco Avante-Garde motif, with marble floors, fountains, artificial foliage and little natural lighting. The building was also partially surrounded by a 2-level parking deck, with accommodations for 3,000 autos.

Other suburban-style shopping malls were built in the Parisienne suburbs. These included VELIZY 2 (1972) {5.7 miles southeast, in Velizy-Villacoublay} and ROSNY 2 (1975) {16.8 miles northeast, in Rosny-Sous-Bois}.

In the mid-1980s, a joint venture was established. The Progemo Company and Sari Company, two Paris-based real estate firms, joined forces with Great Britain's Norwich Union Insurance Company. A parcel of land south of the PARLY 2 mall was acquired. A mall expansion got underway in 1986. 439,700 leasable square feet, and eighty-seven stores, were added. A single-level, Y-shaped shopping concourse was built, which crossed over Avenue du Docteure Albert Schweitzer. The thoroughfare was routed through a tunnel for the mall extension. 

The new South Wing was dedicated in October 1987. It had 3 levels. The first floor housed a parking garage. The second contained the Y-shaped mall. Level 3 consisted of a rooftop parking deck and two blocks of retail stores. The additional facilities expanded the mall's parking capacity to nearly 5,000 autos.

Stores opened as part of the 1987 extension included C & A (an apparel chain), fnac (selling electronics & appliances), Habitat (carrying home furnishings) and Truffault (dealing in outdoor and gardening accouterments). PARLY 2 now spanned approximately 1,151,700 leasable square feet and housed 182 stores and services.

Ownership of the mall had changed by the mid-1990s. Norwich Insurance bought out the Sari interest and established 90 percent ownership of the South Wing. In 1994, Norwich divested its real estate holdings and sold its share of the shopping center to the Abu Dhabi Investment Fund. Meanwhile, the circa-1969 section of the mall was acquired by Amsterdam's Rodamco in 1995. 

Toys "R" Us opened their 34th store on French soil, at PARLY 2, on October 21, 2006. By this time, the Place du Marche food court had been installed on Level 3 of the South Wing.

Rodamco merged with Unibail, a Paris-based retail real estate company, in June 2007, forming a new entity known as Unibail-Rodamco. By this time, PARLY 2 was in need of a renovation in order to stay competitive. The mall's dual ownership required its owners to sign a pact to co-ordinate and expedite the redevelopment.   

A 200 million Euro (235 million US dollar) expansion and renovation of the mall was envisaged, which got underway in 2010. The five-phase project started with a face lift of the circa-1969 structure, using a "Sixties Chic" motif. Phase 2 involved renovating, replacing and expanding parking garages and decks. 2,000 new spaces were created.

Next came a refurbishment of the circa-1987 South Wing. With this completed, work began at the northeast corner of the complex in March 2016. A parking garage was demolished. A 16-store addition, known as Pont-Neuf (or "New Bridge"), was built, linking the East (BHV) Court and east end of the South Wing. 

In all, 37,700 square feet -and sixteen stores- were added. The Pont-Neuf section was completed in November 2017. New "signs" (stores) in the mall included Jott, Armani Exchange, Rituals and New Balance. The complex now encompassed approximately 1,259,400 leasable square feet and contained 190 stores and services. 

The final phase of the mall's metamorphosis involved reconstruction and expansion at the northwest corner. The parking deck 5-plex cinema was shuttered in June 2014. It was replaced with the state-of-the-art UGC Cine' Cite'. This 12-screen megaplex, incorporated into a new parking structure, opened for business on June 26, 2019. The official location of the PARLY 2 mall had changed in January. Two adjacent communes merged into a single entity known as Le Chesnay-Rocquencort.   

Sources:

The Tampa Tribune

http://www.parly2.com (website on Internet Archive Wayback Machine)

https://fr-westfield-com
http://www.immoweek.frwww.scc.fr / Ingrid Nappi-Choulet
http://archives.nicematin.com
https://www.lsa-conso.fr / LSA Commerce & Consommation
La Societe des Centres Commerciaux
www.unibail-rodamco.com
www.yveslineradio.com

https://laboratoireurbanismeinsurrectionnel.blogspot.com
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https://business-wishibam-com

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https://englos.aushopping.com/fr

https://www.imediacenter.com

https://wwd.com

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https://www.lineaires.com

https://www.fotw.info

https://mall--center-shopping

https://www.company-histories.com

https://www.urw.com (official Westfield Parly 2 website)

"Parly 2" article on Wikipedia "L'encyclopedie libre"