IN THEIR COURT: For French-named, Copenhagen-based fashion brand Les Deux, Paris was the city that helped take it beyond its home court. Now the brand is giving back by way of a basketball-based project in the city.

“Paris is one of the world’s fashion capitals, and looking back, it gave us a lot of credibility when we started growing beyond Scandinavia,” said Les Deux cofounder Andreas von der Heide. “It began with a few people believing in us, and it has grown into one of our biggest markets. Paris and France kicked off the international journey.”

Les Deux now has around 120 retail partners in France and opened its first flagship outside Scandinavia in the city’s Marais last fall.

The men’s brand has invested approximately 65,000 euros to refurbish two public courts at Terrain de Sport Glacière in Paris’ 13th arrondissement. The courts, which sit beneath the elevated metro tracks painted with a colorful design, will remain free and open to the public.

The Paris court is the third Home Court project from the sports-coded label, following projects in New York in 2023 and Copenhagen in 2025. But the idea is less about putting the Les Deux name on an activation than leaving something useful behind for the community.

“We weren’t interested in dropping a temporary installation into Paris. The right approach was to improve something people already valued, then leave it open for them to use,” von der Heide said.

He recalled visiting the court in Copenhagen after its opening and seeing grandparents and grandkids playing together.

“If there’s a court and a ball, you can play. It doesn’t matter how old you are or what gear you have. You can arrive on your own and end up playing with someone you’ve never met,” he said.

The brand will continue to work on community-oriented projects through its Legacy program.

“The format can change but the principle doesn’t,” von der Heide said. “We look at the places connected to our journey and ask what we can leave behind that will still be useful when we’re no longer standing there talking about it.”

Les Deux will host an official opening with the local mayor at a later date, and is planning “something special” for early next year.