The Queen of
the Croisette

Nathalie Dubois and the DPA Gift Suite Turn 21 on the Riviera

JW Marriott CannesMay 13 – 22, 2026-21st Edition

Every May, amid the red carpets, the Palme d'Or contenders, and the Croisette's perpetual parade of glamour, one address becomes the most sought-after room in Cannes — and it has nothing to do with a film screening.

For 21 consecutive years, Nathalie Dubois — CEO and president of Dubois Pelin & Associates (DPA) — has opened the doors of the most elegant gifting lounge in the world at the Cannes Film Festival, personally curating an invitation-only retreat where luxury brands from across the globe meet the biggest names in international cinema. This year, the DPA Cannes Gift Suite 2026 returned to its now-iconic home at the JW Marriott on the Croisette, open May 13 through 22 from 10am to 6pm daily.

It is, in the truest sense, a room where the world comes to Cannes.

The Origin Story

Long before gifting lounges became a standard fixture of the awards-season circuit, Nathalie Dubois was building the blueprint. France-born and Los Angeles-based, Dubois launched her first celebrity gift lounge in the early 2000s and quickly became known as the gold standard for the format — earning her the moniker "the mother of all gifting lounges." Her first suite on the Croisette arrived not long after her LA debut, making DPA the pioneering company to transplant the gifting lounge concept from Hollywood to the hallowed grounds of the world's most prestigious film festival.

What made DPA different from the start was Dubois's insistence on global curation. While competitors leaned on familiar domestic brands, she traveled the world — Japan, Tahiti, Estonia, France, Southeast Asia — seeking out designers, artisans, and producers whose work had the kind of story that celebrities and press would actually want to tell. She partnered with Nikki Beach in Cannes, expanded to Venice, Toronto, Dubai, Hong Kong, and beyond, eventually establishing DPA's first Asian office in Tokyo in 2017.

“When I started twenty years ago, I did not think I would last 20 years. I became known as one of the best companies to produce these gift suites in the USA and the only one to host them worldwide.”

— Nathalie Dubois, CEO, DPA Group

Today, DPA operates gifting lounges at Cannes, Venice, and Toronto Film Festivals, as well as during the Golden Globe Awards and France's César Awards — making it the only marketing company in the world to hold official partnerships with the major film and television festivals across multiple continents. The Cannes lounge has historically rotated between the Croisette's most legendary addresses, from the InterContinental Carlton Hotel to its current home at the JW Marriott.

The 2026 Edition

The 21st edition of the DPA Cannes Gift Suite arrived with the kind of depth you'd expect from two decades of refinement. Spanning multiple categories — fashion, jewelry, beauty, travel, food & beverage, and curated treats — the suite was a meticulously assembled world in miniature, each brand hand-selected by Dubois herself. As guests entered, the Croisette's energy gave way to an atmosphere of curated luxury, with each station representing a different corner of the globe.

The suite welcomed A-list jury members, actors, directors, and press throughout its ten-day run, continuing a tradition of star-studded foot traffic that has included, over the years, some of the most recognized faces in world cinema.