An international exhibition was proposed for Paris in 1914 but postponed because of the First World War. The proposal eventually became the ‘Exposition Internationale des Arts Decoratifs et Industriels Modernes|’, held in 1925. French department stores such as Printemps and Galeries Lafayette joined in enthusiastically, building pavilions in the exhibition grounds. Many of the visitors were entranced by the luxurious French Moderne design. They quickly and cheaply copied the look, using motifs like stylised flowers, frozen fountains and angular outline shapes in their own designs.