Archives des People & Business Profiles

Rio Soléy Design

Rio Soléy is the designer behind the hand drawn Paris map that helps people see that Bill & Rosa's Book Room is not far at all from Paris center. We love her work which is both elegant and whimsical at the same time. Her journey in lettering started at the age of 5 when her parents enrolled her in a calligraphy class. Since then, she's been captivated by the intricacies of letterforms and the artistry involved in evoking diverse emotions through them. She tells us a bit more about herself and her art, including her beautifully thought out and crafted IRO print collection. Can you tell us a bit about yourself? Hello! I’m Rio Soléy, a digital artist & designer specialised in lettering. I create and sell art prints that evoke optimism, simplicity, and tranquility. I’m from Japan, but I’ve lived in Canada, the UK, Germany, and now in France. When I’m not creating art prints, I’m painting letters on store signs and vitrines to help shop owners in Paris stand out …

Interview with Fiona Sze-Lorrain

Fiona Sze-Lorrain is a poet, literary translator and musician. She writes and translates in English, French, and Chinese and is the author of several poetry collections and most recently a novel in stories, Dear Chrysathemums, published by Scribner in 2023. Longlisted for the 2024 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction, the novel celebrates diversity and women and features deeply compelling Asian women who reckon with the past, violence, and exile—set in Shanghai, Beijing, Singapore, Paris, and New York. Fiona lives in Paris and we were thrilled to welcome her in February to the Book Room, where she talked about her novel. If you missed her event, you can read the questions we asked and Fiona’s answers below: Bill & Rosa: You are a musician and a poet, you have published several collections of poems, I was wondering what was the determining factor in your decision to write a novel? Was it a character, or a story that you felt needed to be told? Fiona Sze-…

Don’t Miss Out: A Guide to Recovery Rebate Credit for U.S. Expats

If you’re one of the many U.S. expats who are owed stimulus money, you can still claim it through Recovery Rebate Credit. As the matter of fact, 2024 is the last year to get all the stimulus checks you might have missed! It will either boost the amount of your tax refund or reduce the taxes you owe to the IRS. Either way – you win! Don’t miss out on the opportunity to get the money you’re entitled to. Keep reading to find out how the credit works and what makes you eligible to qualify. WHAT IS RECOVERY REBATE CREDIT? Recovery Rebate Credit is part of the Covid-19 Economic Relief program. The credit makes it possible for those who didn’t receive Economic Impact Payments (also known as stimulus payments) to claim their missing money. So if you were eligible for stimulus payments but did not receive them (or you received a partial payment), you can claim them through Recovery Rebate Credit on your tax return. HOW TO CLAIM RECOVERY REBATE CREDIT Getting your Recovery Rebate Cre…

Merde! Stephen Clarke, Interview with a Paris author

"Not one of the other Stephen Clarkes you might have read about, who include an Olympic swimmer, a world-record-holding pumpkin sculptor and various criminals. I'm just the author whose new novel, Merde at the Paris Olympics, is now out." -- Stephen Clarke

If you are an expat in Paris (or not!) you must know the adventures of Paul West, The hero of A Year in the Merde and its sequels depicting French lifestyle from his personal perspective as an English man. The books became incredibly famous as many people could relate to the story. Who never had problems adapting to a new country? The language, the workplace, meeting people... many subjects tackled in the books with a great sense of humour. As a French girl, I was very amused by those books. Even if Stephen Clarke gently points out some of our weird traits, it is obvious that deep down he really loves France. As a matter of fact, I found out he lives in France! I spent a few years in…

Interview with American writer Jake Lamar

American writer Jake Lamar will visit Bill & Rosa's Book Room on June 3 to discuss his latest novel, Viper’s Dream which has just been published in English. He is an American author who has lived in Paris for almost 30 years, he teaches creative writing at Sciences Po and is the author of a memoir, seven novels, numerous essays, reviews and short stories and a play. He is also the recipient of several prestigious prizes, among which the Lyndhurst Prize and France’s Grand Prize for best foreign thriller. He is fascinating to listen to, passionate about Harlem jazz and has a excellent speaking voice that will draw you in. This is the first part of our interview with him:

Q: You started out as a journalist for Time Magazine, so my question is, have you always wanted to be a writer and have you always known you wanted to write ficiton?

A: I’ve known since the age of 12 that I wanted to be a writer and that I wanted to write fiction. The jo…

French Entrepreneur Families

French entrepreneur families

Some of the most famous brands in France were initially and often still are family businesses. A few even headed by women! Meet six historic French entrepreneur families starting with Chaumet the creator of the 2024 Paris Olympics Medals.

Chaumet

Marie-Etienne Nitot was an 18th century creator. He started near the top apprenticing to Marie-Antoinette's personal jeweller. In 1780 he founded his own maison. He survived the trauma of the Revolution to thrive under Napoleon who had an ambition to re-make France a center for luxury and fashion. Beginning with Napoleon's coronation sword Nitot became an important creator for the Empire and one of the most sought after jewellers in Europe. His son took the reins in 1812 and set up on Place Vendome. Joseph Chaumet became the director in 1885. His signature in the time of the belle epoque was nature-inspired aigrettes and tiaras which were social symbols. Tiaras morph…

Giving Up U.S. Citizenship: Why and How

Giving Up U.S. Citizenship: Why and How There are many reasons why someone may want to give up their US citizenship. One of them is taxation. 1040 Abroad is here to explain the reasons people give up U.S. citizenship and how to do it. According to the Department of State, 6,705 Americans gave up their citizenship in 2020 alone. Compared to the 2,577 people who gave up their US citizenship in 2019, that number has increased by 260%. The renunciation of citizenship is a means of giving up citizenship that takes effect on the date of the interview at the U.S. consulate. A person who gives up U.S. citizenship will lose many benefits in the U.S., including voting rights, protection from foreign governments, and the ability to pass U.S. citizenship to their children. The main benefit of U.S. citizenship is still the right to live and work in the United States as desired. As a result, people who renounce U.S. citizenship tend to have established lives in their host country. Wh…

More French entrepreneur families

French entrepreneur families are the names you see on the streets and on brands that are familiar they are Inventors and business people. Here's their story.

The Despature Family – Damart Thermolactyl

More than 400 million pieces of Thermolactyl clothing have been sold since its invention in 1953. The story began with the Despature brothers who in 1950 inherited a fabric factory in Roubaix. Textile manufacturing was in decline and the three brothers got to thinking about how to save their business. Inspiration came via their aunt who had rheumatism and who talked about the virtues of triboelectricity (an electric charge generated by friction). The brothers invented a fabric that when in contact with the skin creates electrostatic warmth. It also did not retain dampness. Their invention took off. The first Parisian shop was opened in 1957 and in 1958 the radio station Europe 1 chose Thermolactyl, the first high tech fabric made in France, as one of the most i…

Independent Bookstore Day – 23 April

April 23 is Saint George's Day. Saint George is the patron of booksellers thus his day was chosen as Independent Bookstore Day, an initiative of Association Verbes, which aims to promote independent bookstores and to maintain the special status they have in France in the face of ever more present threats, such as e-books. This initiative was started twenty-three years ago and today, Independent Bookstore Day is celebrated in 80 countries. Each year, the association publishes 23,000 copies of a book whose purpose is to acquaint people with publishing and with the demands of running a bookstore. This year's book, on sale for just 3€, is a compilation of reading lists that ispired 50 French authors. Each author also has a page to describe the view from their writing space. Bill& Rosa’s Book Room will participate in this year’s event, check out this page for more information on our activities. This year, to celebrate Independent Bookstore Day, we thought you'd like to meet a…

Damon Dominique, Interview with an American Youtuber in Paris

If you are an expat in Paris (or not!) you may well have crossed the path of Youtuber Damon Dominique. He's a world traveler who has somewhat settled in Paris (although he was in NYC when he did this interview!). His videos give insight into travelling experiences in general and living in Paris where he covers the language, the quest for an apartment or bank account, meeting people... many subjects tackled with a wry and wild sense of humour. His style has many facettes and is not for everyone, but he is certainly not boring and has some interesting tips and observations that he has culled from his personal experience. He in fact just created a video series French class called "The French I Wish I had Learned in French Class". Again it is from his point of view, as a learner of French, rather than as a teacher of French. It's not dry or boring, plenty of pop culture references, and has a built-in exasperation (a natural part of learning French!). French Course: All The French…

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