Through every neighborhood, every conversation, and every carefully chosen piece, our Parisian Profiles celebrate the people who make the city what it is.
We selected ten people to offer a well-rounded perspective on what it means to be Parisian. They come from across the city and around the world, with distinct professions, personalities, and points of view. Yet they are united by one idea: Paris is home.
For Yorgo, Paris is a city best explored on two wheels. A designer by trade and a lifelong observer, he experiences the city through movement, finding inspiration in hidden places, unexpected details, and stories that reveal themselves over time.
His favorite days in Paris are perhaps the least conventionally Parisian: the rare occasions when enough snow falls to stop the city’s car traffic. When that happens, Yorgo takes his Brompton out onto the deserted streets, despite its “completely unsuitable” little tires. Suddenly, familiar streets become something entirely different.
After years of cycling through Paris, he takes pride in being able to navigate almost anywhere without GPS—although he admits that the 12th arrondissement can still present a challenge.
That combination of curiosity and observation also defines his professional life. Through his studio, Yorgo&Co, Yorgo works across industries ranging from sport and luxury to culture. A day might involve designing a visual identity, magazine, object, book, scenography, or typography. The variety is precisely what keeps the work interesting.
His relationship with objects is considerably less serious. Ask what he wants from a jacket he plans to keep for years and his requirement is straightforward: pockets—the more, the better. Some of his jackets have more than twenty, gradually becoming accidental archives filled with forgotten lighters, old business cards, and the occasional Doliprane tablet.
Behind that humor is a genuine appreciation for objects that are lived with rather than simply owned. That sense of continuity extends to family and place. Yorgo has helped preserve the workshop of his father, sculptor Philolaos, in the working state in which it was left after his passing in 2010. Hidden at the top of a hill outside central Paris, the 1960s modernist building preserves both an artistic practice and a family history.
And then there is Greece. Yorgo’s greatest luxury is returning to his house there every summer. He is quick to point out that the house itself is far from luxurious. What matters is its location, away from tourism and ten minutes from a surf spot where he has been surfing alone since the 1980s.
Yorgo’s Paris Tip: Stop by Yorgaki, Yorgo’s namesake Greek café on Rue des Martyrs—a little piece of his Greek identity in Paris.
What Yorgo Wears: Yorgo wears our Magnus hiker boot with ease. This one-piece, over-the-ankle style is our lightweight, cross-seasonal interpretation of the classic combat boot. Thick grained leather provides lasting durability, while wear over time allows the boot to develop a character that reflects the life of its wearer.
