It is known as the City of Light. But a shadow has been cast over Paris, where some of the wealthiest women in the world have arrived for the start of the January couture shows.

Instead of swanning freely into the arching halls of the Grand Palais and other local landmarks where the lavish défilés are held, most will be forced to open their handbags, doff their furs and regularly submit to full body-wand checks at almost every event as part of stringent new security measures.

Terrorist attacks and a spate of vicious high-profile robberies have tarnished the French capital’s reputation as a playground for the very rich, and raised concerns that the clients usually wooed during such fashion events may start to avoid them.