Since the Renaissance, Lyon has been the capital of silk printing. A city with a textile tradition. A tradition to which A Piece Of Chic feels connected: the small company wants to revive the city's golden era with silk scarves and accessories. Founder Sebastien Chirpaz is going his own way.
The man is tired. You can see that Sebastien Chirpaz is almost constantly on the move for A Piece Of Chic, between fashion fairs, vintage events and classic car meetings. I meet him in Berlin, one of his stopovers on the annual Grand Tour in the service of the cause. His cause, his topic. It sounds strange, but printed silk scarves have now become the Frenchman's life. With A Piece Of Chic he is doing something that he believes had to be done, that quickly becomes clear. That's why he doesn't speak much in business vocabulary, instead he uses big words that don't sound forced but completely believable when he comes out of his mouth: passion, love, satisfaction. Then the tiredness disappears from his serious face with the cheeky Menjou moustache, and in calm, thoughtful sentences Sebastien takes me into his world of thoughts, a world in which the childhood heroes of yesteryear still haunt. The adventurers of the 20s and 30s, dashing aviators, daredevils behind the wheel of racing cars or death-defying motorcyclists. But why does a seasoned man over 40 return to the mythical roots of speed? Why does he give up a well-paid career in the video game industry and instead start fighting against the windmills of modernity?
"I had an interesting and creative job. But at some point I got fed up with the daily nonsense in a big company and all the marketing platitudes. I was always interested in the heroes of speed, the early aviators, motorcyclists or motorists - they all usually wore a silk scarf, for practical but also for style reasons. The scarf is more than a fashion statement, for me it embodies a whole attitude to life. A casual but elegant attitude. When I came to Lyon, I discovered the tradition of silk printing. I wanted to do something with it and I started making my first scarves."
His customers were mods and scooter boys, a scene that is very strong in Lyon and, like Sebastien's historical role models, always places value on a perfect appearance. He sold his scarves at flea markets and mod events and found them to be a huge success. What began as a hobby quickly became a lifelong journey on the Silk Road. Since then, Chirpaz has been fully employed. He now travels all year round with Veronique, his spiritual sister at A Piece Of Chic. For good reason: "Customers want direct contact with us. And we are our own best salespeople. Whenever we have left sales to others, it has not worked." Despite all the enthusiasm for the local presence, A Piece Of Chic also has an online shop - after all, there is nothing wrong with using the possibilities of the 21st century for romantic products too. 
For Sebastien, the connecting element to his old life in the entertainment industry is his love of good stories. For the Frenchman, his silk scarves are always symbols: They tell of the past, its dreams and youthful, exuberant deeds. And of a sense of style that has been lost in today's fashion. "I don't see A Piece Of Chic as part of the fashion scene. We are more like a publishing house or a record company; we tell stories with our products." Sometimes these stories are invented, sometimes they are based on real historical events from sports, technology or politics. There are scarves with echoes of big boxing matches, others celebrate wiry pilots in biplanes and still others draw their inspiration from pre-war motorcycles.
Over time, the spectrum of A Piece Of Chic expanded. Scarves are still the main focus, but are now complemented by ties, T-shirts and sweaters. "It just happened that way," explains Sebastien. "Mostly it had to do with meeting people who inspired me and gave me ideas." That's why it's so important for him to tour all over Europe like a rock band, to "be in the field," as Sebastien describes it. This is the only way he can meet like-minded people who understand the philosophy behind A Piece Of Chic and, ideally, help to develop it further. 
Most of the silk scarves are printed using digital printing with the help of reliable partners in Lyon. This keeps costs manageable and even very small series with small quantities are possible. Sebastien is happy with the results, but as a perfectionist and fanatic of originality, he would like to change this in the long term and return to manual printing: "For two years I have been working with a young printer who works the way he used to. The problem is that this process only pays off for expensive, high-end products. However, I firmly believe that a brand like A Piece Of Chic can only survive if our products are really authentic. That's why I want to completely switch production to manual printing in the long term."
There is a method to the use of traditional techniques, as the man with the Menjou moustache sees himself as a kind of ambassador of the past. Sebastien's voice takes on a decisive tone as he describes his ethos: "For me, the whole heritage movement also embodies an obligation. We have to pass things on, not just wear them because they're cool. I feel connected to the people of 70 or 80 years ago through the clothes and accessories. This gives rise to a task: if we let this connection break, something will disappear forever."
Text • Carsten Sobek | Photos • A PIECE OF CHIC, laurentnivalle.fr