Born in the second half of the 19th century, in the wake of the industrial and Haussmann revolutions, department stores profoundly changed consumer habits and the status of women. This prodigy was the brainchild of a modest itinerant hosiery salesman, Aristide Boucicaut, who came to Paris with flair and a knack for commerce. He was overflowing with ideas that he put into practice at Le Bon Marché : friendly saleswomen, a queenly clientele, displayed prices, the possibility of returning items, and soon, sales, paid vacations for staff...

Interviewing historians and sociologists, delving into department store archives, and slipping in strikingly true quotes from Zola's novel, this documentary tells the story of the rise of Le Bon Marché and the other stores that followed in its wake : Selfridges, Le Printemps, Les Galeries Lafayette...