Celebrated for its printed cottons, silks and hand-woven rugs, Braquenié has a rich, fascinating style in which the opulence, luxuriance and exoticism of France’s Second Empire go hand-in-hand with the undulations, Japonism and organic curves of Art Nouveau and then with the geometrical influence of the decorative arts.
The story began in 1824 when Pierre Antoine Demy and his wife set up shop as merchants of “laine-fer en meubles” in Paris. The couple joined up with the two Braquenié brothers in 1842 and 1845. Henri-Charles, the elder, married their daughter and the two families became associates, giving the company the name “Braquenié et Cie” in 1875.