FRENCH LEAVE

Sophie and Baligh have found a little piece of paradise on France's Blue Coast - and their home's interior is also divine

- Emma Love

So often a milestone birthday sparks big life changes. In the case of Sophie Ferjani, it was her husband Baligh’s 40th that prompted the pair to leave Paris, their home for 20 years, and finally realise their long-held dream of opening a shop together. ‘Baligh has worked in retail for a long time, so we always knew that we wanted to have a concept store together; we just didn’t know where or when,’ recalls interior designer Sophie, of the move they undertook six years ago. ‘We were drawn to the south of France for the sunshine, and chose Marseille because when I was young my mother used to take me there during the summer holidays. I remembered it as a place full of energy and possibilities, which it still is.’