When we asked Albert Goldberg, almost seventy years old, the man who created Façonnable fifty years ago and “chic sportswear”, why he started the adventure of a new brand of clothing for men, he mentioned names such as Compay Segundo and Zinedine Zidane.
This deserves an explanation: “The Cuban guitarist and his friends of the Buena Vista Social Club were met with worldwide success after eighty years. Zidane has agreed to go back in the French soccer team, to lead it to the world cup final. These stories show that they hadn’t reached the end of their paths. Well, neither had I. I hadn’t finished… I could afford a yacht and sail around the world for the rest of my life but I preferred to invest and create a new brand.” He told us more: “I gained maturity. That which started out as instinct became, through years and experiences, the mastering of an art. Besides, I never stop going back, by periods of six months, from spring-summer collection to autumn-winter collection…”
Upon discovering the store, at the corner of the Promenade des Anglais and the Rue Massenet, we can truly appreciate the results of this ‘mastering’. What is surprising for the visitor is sense of the “never seen before”. If perfection is what remains when everything is removed, then this store, in its simplicity, approaches it closely. We find, of course, his elegance in the clothes design, the first creation of the “New Albert”, succeeding himself.
“True luxury, for me, is not obvious at first glance. It is fine craftsmanship teamed with the choice of the best materials. That’s why the craftsman is the king of the world of clothing, as in the world of watches for example. I can only work with people who love what they do.”
“Monsieur JEAN”
He has never hesitated to travel around the world in search of craftsmen capable of making a shirt, a vest, a hand-made costume piece, like the true tailor. Besides, the complete name of his new brand : “Albert Arts: The Tailor’s Son” is no coincidence.
The tailor is, of course, “Monsieur Jean”, his father, who wielded the scissors, the chalk and the pin-cushion better than anyone, in the original store, “rue Paradis” in Nice. Alberts adds that he would like his father to be proud of him.
Confidence reflects a deep sense of loyalty and authenticity that are two hallmarks of his personality, the man and the artist too. As such, the choice of the Promenade des Anglais is for a reason. Albert Goldberg explains: “For me, La Prom’ is, when I was 5 and my uncle Léon took me to the beach. Then, when I was 17, the Palais de la Mediterranée where I used to dance with my girlfriend, the most beautiful girl in Nice. It is also soccer on the “Forum” beach with my friends.
In the army, in Alsace, I had a poster of the Promenade des Anglais on my wall and I used to dream about living there one day… But the Promenade did not deserve its fate. The Casino Ruhl was destroyed in the name of money. Fortunately we still have the Negresco and the front of the Palais de la Mediterranée. People, from all around the world know the Baie des Anges, as Copacabana, Piccadilly or the fifth avenue. It’s a magical address. The Prom’ needs to regain its fame. With my store, I wanted to participate to that rebirth.
Roger-Louis Bianchini. |
