By 24 she had opened her own firm and was soon designing hotel interiors for such prestigious names as Concorde, Le Crillon...

As well as top restaurants, commissions include casinos, which “allow for playful designs with no limit on creativity,” she says.

Whether designing for a brand or an individual (like Bernard Arnault), her approach is the same: “we’re attentive to the client’s personality… then we bring out a space’s light, integrate technology harmoniously… and do something that hasn’t already been done.”

After outfitting a 5-stars hotel in Marrakech, de Margerie’s working on the Paris Mandarin Oriental, opening 2010.