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Located in the south-east ’13ème’ district of Paris, MK2 Bibliothèque is a grand boutique cineplex. A USD 30 million branch of an 11 theatre chain, the MK2 Bibliothèque (so named for its proximity to the François Mitterrand National Library) features 14 screens, as well as cafes, restaurants, DVD shop, classical music boutique, bookstore, modern art gallery and even a DJ bar. It’s a miniature cultural city incased in a long, sleek, glass and steel structure, linking movie-going to other experiences. Besides state of the art projection and sound, the theatres’ trademark feature is MK2 Bibliothèque’s “fauteuils pour deux”: loveseats for two. As for what’s up on the screen, there’s a strong focus on independent and arthouse movies, as well as blockbusters. As we like to point out, everything can be upgraded. Design driven innovation like that of MK2 Bibliothèque, or the Austrian supermarkets we recently featured, creates a superior experience for consumers, while offering companies a way to differentiate themselves from their competition. And it works for MK2: while overall French admission fell more than 10 per cent in 2005, MK2 lifted revenues by 4.4 per cent while net profits increased by more than 14 per cent to EUR 12 million (source: Financial Times). C’est pas mal!