Readers’ Rides: Nassim and His Sam Hillborne

While Cari and John were taking a holiday after Bespoked UK in Paris, visiting family, they met Nassim at a unique shop where he works called Words, Sounds, Colors, & Shapes. Afterward, John documented Nassim’s Rivendell, which was built by Paris’s La Chouette. Let’s check it out in a slightly different Readers’ Rides…

Cari and I were staying on the border of the 10th and 11th arrondissements in Paris, visiting her brother, who lives in France. Every year, we try to take some downtime after covering an event like Bespoked, and I hadn’t been to Paris in twenty years. The last time I was there was just after graduating from my college architecture program.

We took the train from London and arrived in Paris. The next morning, I swung by to see La Chouette, one of the few shops in Paris that focuses on adventure cycling and stocks some of my favorite brands. Saying our goodbyes, Cari and I left the shop and headed into the 3rd arrondissement to do some people watching.

I have a thing for camo jackets, and this one shop, called Words, Sounds, Colors, & Shapes, baited me with a jacket at the front door. Walking inside, we both realized this was no ordinary shop. Part political activist archive, part coffee shop, and retail, the store is the ideation of Ramdane Touhami, a designer. We quickly got recognized by Nassim, who said to me, “You’…