The Essence of Style

The Sun King

Before the latter half of the 17th century, only an elite few enjoyed the finer things in life. This began to change when haute couture and haute cuisine took root and bloomed under the careful eye of King Louis XIV of France. Because the Sun King and his right-hand man – minister of finance Jean-Baptiste Colbert – understood marketing, they sparked an appetite for luxury that touched people of all economic levels. The French responded by wanting a taste of the newly available finery. A shop girl could not afford a new outfit, but she could buy “ribbons or stockings.” The new need to manufacture the accessories – or accouterments – of fine living spawned the French food and fashion industries.

By merging art and business, the King and Colbert developed the first economy based on producing luxury goods. New professions emerged, including hairdressers, chefs and couturières. This revolutionized the way people shopped and ate. The monarch’s economic policy dictated low imports and high exports. The French were to produce and export the goods the King saw as essential to the emerging lavishness of the French way of life.

Louis XIV paid...