Ernest Cognacq
Ernest Cognacq (born October 2, 1839 in Saint-Martin-de-Ré , † February 21, 1928 in Paris ) was a French wholesale merchant. In 1869 he founded the Parisian department store La Samaritaine together with his wife Marie-Louise Jaÿ .
Life
Ernest Cognacq lost his father, a goldsmith , at the age of 12 . He then became a seller in various shops in La Rochelle , Rochefort and Bordeaux , and at the age of 15 tried his luck in Paris, where he initially had little success. After a brief return to the provinces, he tried a second time in Paris in 1856. As an employee of La Nouvelle Héloïse , he met Marie-Louise Jaÿ .
In 1867, Cognacq went into business for the first time and failed. A second attempt in 1869, shortly before the Franco-Prussian War , proved more successful. In 1871, however, Cognac only had two employees. By marrying the first saleswoman in the clothing department at Le Bon Marché , Cognacq gained an active, intelligent and wealthy companion in 1872. With it he had the La Samaritaine department store expanded into a large department store at the turn of the century.
Between 1900 and 1925 the couple built up an important art collection with a focus on French art of the 18th century. Ernest Cognacq and Marie-Louise Jaÿ remained childless and Cognac bequeathed this collection to the city of Paris in 1928. The Musée Cognacq-Jay was initially on the Boulevard des Capucines and has been located in the Hôtel Donon , rue Elzévir, in the 3rd arrondissement since 1990 .
Ernest Cognacq also sponsored his home community of Saint-Martin-de-Ré , where there is now a Musée municipal Ernest Cognacq . In 1916, the couple founded the “Fondation Cognacq-Jay”, which is still active today.
literature
- Ferdinand Laudet: La Samaritaine, le génie et la générosité de deux grands commercants. Paris 1933.
- Meredith L. Clausen: Frantz Jourdain and the Samaritaine. Art Nouveau Theory and Criticism. Brill Academic Publishers , Leiden 1987, 350 pp., Hardback, Ill., ISBN 90-04-07879-7 , ( page 216 in Google Books ).
Web links
- Musée Cognacq-Jay de Paris
- Musée Ernest Cognacq de Saint-Martin-de-Ré
- Le Musée de l'Île de Ré - Le Musée Ernest Cognacq de Saint-Martin-de-Ré
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Cognacq, Ernest |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | French commercial entrepreneur and co-founder of the La Samaritaine department store |
| DATE OF BIRTH | October 2, 1839 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Saint-Martin-de-Ré , Île de Ré |
| DATE OF DEATH | February 21, 1928 |
| Place of death | Paris |