Pokémon at Cremerie de Paris
Pokémon took over the Cremerie de Paris N°1 — probably the world's most iconic pop-up store location, in the heart of the 1st arrondissement, where brands from around the globe unveil their latest creations. Discover the full story and pictures on the official Cremerie de Paris page.
The Pokémon idea
The concept of Pokémon was created in the early 1990s by Satoshi Tajiri, who loved collecting insects as a child in rural Japan. He imagined a world where kids could:
- collect creatures,
- trade them with friends,
- and battle them in a game-like ecosystem.
This idea became the foundation of the Pokémon universe. He worked with the artist Ken Sugimori and his development team at Game Freak, which later partnered with Nintendo.
When Pokémon launched internationally as Pokémon Red and Blue, it exploded in popularity thanks to:
- the anime series featuring Ash Ketchum and Pikachu,
- the trading cards,
- and the toys and merchandise.
The franchise became a “media ecosystem,” not just a game.
Pikachu becomes a global icon
Pikachu became the face of Pokémon because:
- it was featured heavily in the anime,
- it had a friendly, memorable design,
- and it symbolised the bond between humans and Pokémon.
Historic links between Pokémon, Stravinsky, Coco Chanel and Cremerie de Paris
When Junichi Masuda — composer of the Pokémon music, a key figure behind the franchise and one of the most important creative people at Game Freak — was asked to imagine the very first Pokémon Store in Europe, he researched history. Did you know that the Pokémon soundtracks are inspired by the Russian composer Igor Stravinsky (1882–1971)? That trail led Masuda to Cremerie de Paris — a place tied to the private life of Coco Chanel, a close friend of the musician. It was like choosing, for the first Pokémon Center, a spot in the very roots of Pokémon history.
Pokémon Pop Up at Cremerie de Paris
Expected by Pokémon fans, the first Pokémon Center in Europe turned into a sensation. Never before had Châtelet–Les Halles seen such waiting lines in front of a store.
2014, for three weeks, thousands of Pokémon lovers — sometimes dressed in Pikachu costumes — queued all along the rue des Déchargeurs and the rue de Rivoli.
Young people from all around Europe travelled to Paris to see the store, discover the original Pokémon drawings and talk to Junichi Masuda.
The pop-up was open from 4 June 2014 to 21 June 2014. It was organised by Thierry Bisseliches from the agency My Pop Up Store (https://mypopupstore.fr).
Queen Elizabeth II and Cremerie de Paris / Pokémon
Even Queen Elizabeth II (1926–2022) — who was in Paris on 7 June 2014 to inaugurate a square in her name, the nearby flower market Marché aux Fleurs Reine Elizabeth II — drove by, seeing the impressive waiting line of Pokémon fans.
Did you know that Queen Elizabeth II also has a last-century connection with Cremerie de Paris / VB history ? In fact, her husband Prince Philip / Philip Mountbatten Windsor (1921–2021) is related to the Russian Romanov family. His grandmother Victoria Hessen / Victoria Battenberg (1863–1950) was the sister of Alix Hessen / Alexandra Romanov, the last Tsarina of Russia (1872–1918), and the sister-in-law of Eleonore Solms (1871–1937). As a young man, Prince Philip lived in Saint-Cloud, west of Paris, so he knew the beautiful Les Halles food market — and probably some of the Romanov fairy tales around Cremerie de Paris.
The Tsarina knew the fairy tales around Cremerie de Paris from her childhood friend, the French Empress Eugénie (1825–1920), the creative mind behind the construction of the beautiful Les Halles area and the Baltard Pavilions.
Alix loved to repeat the VB stories, based on the young child-king Louis XIV. She loved repeating them to children — among them her daughter Anastasia Romanov (1901–1918), Dmitri Romanov (1891–1942), who later showed Cremerie de Paris to Coco Chanel (1883–1971) and Igor Stravinsky (1882–1971). There is also Carl Solms (1903–2003), great-uncle and babysitter of today's manager of Cremerie de Paris.
Thus the Japanese Pokémon music has a lot of links with Paris history.
Can you imagine how fun it would have been for the Romanov children to discover Pokémon and to come to their magic Cremerie de Paris Pop Up Store?
- 📢WhatPokémon took over the Cremerie de Paris for a pop-up store.
- 📍WhereCremerie de Paris N°1 · 11 rue des Déchargeurs — angle 15 rue des Halles, 75001 Paris
- 🚊Getting thereChâtelet–Les Halles (RER A·B·D, M1·4·7·11·14), exit N°1 Marguerite de Navarre
- ✨Did you know?A place tied to the child Louis XIV, Coco Chanel and the first Paris internet café — where Steve Jobs once came by.
- 🌐About Pokémon
The Pokémon Pop Up was so spectacular, it turned into a permanent “online”
Tourist Attraction
When a Cremerie de Paris Pop Up Store is well done, something unique comes with it. The Expo becomes part of the history of a landmark that is a crossroads between past and future — the same place that saw every Bourbon King of France walk through its courtyard at VB (Hôtel de Villeroy-Bourbon) was, at the very dawn of the Internet, an avant-garde Internet café. The Pokémon Pop Up Store continues to be admired from the homepage of VB.com — the only "two-letter dot-com" in the world connected to a Pop Up Store / Museum location. Thus Pokémon becomes an online tourist attraction on a prestigious "Visit" tourism website. Internet Users and Paris Lovers will keep discovering the Pokémon event through time.