Yves Saint Laurent will open a Salon de Couture (fitting salon) and a Saint Laurent men's and women's atelier at the Hôtel Sénectaire, located at 24 rue de la Université in Paris's 7th arrondissement on the Left Bank (Rive Gauche), in October. The atelier will be relocated from its current location in the 1st arrondissement. Creative Director Hedi Slimane, who currently has his own atelier in Los Angeles, plans to continue operating there. After founding his haute couture house in 1961, Yves Saint Laurent opened a ready-to-wear store in 1966 on Rue de Tournon in the 6th arrondissement on the Left Bank of the Seine. At that time, he adopted the French word "Rive Gauche," meaning "Left Bank," and named the brand "Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche."

This was meant to express the brand's stance of setting itself apart from the haute couture houses that had been concentrated around the Champs-Élysées, where their bourgeois clientele had previously gathered. At the time, haute couture was at its height, but fashion history was gradually shifting towards ready-to-wear. Incidentally, Yves Saint Laurent himself lived in the nearby 7th arrondissement with his partner, Pierre Bergé.