Soeur sets its sights on Italia: “Today, affordable luxury is all about quality and design”
A conversation with the founder and CEO of the French brand, which is also set to open a shop in Florence soon: “Customers are looking not only for reasonable prices, but also for care and attention to detail.”
On the one hand, luxury, which focuses on the highest-spending customer segment; on the other, fast fashion (and ultra-fast fashion), which focus on the lowest prices (and quality). Between these two extremes lies an increasingly crowded space of brands seeking to cater to those who desire that delicate and complex balance between value and the price on the label, whilst also prioritising research, design and the uniqueness of their own approach.
One such brand is Soeur, founded in Paris in 2007 by sisters Domitille and Angelique Brion, and now also led by CEO Freja Day: since 2023, it has been 81 per cent owned by Roberta Benaglia’s Style Capital fund (whose portfolio also includes Zimmermann and MSGM), with its blend of contemporary design, high-quality materials and timeless inspiration, has grown from a turnover of 50 million to nearly 100 million in the space of three years. “Soeur offers versatile garments, designed to be worn because they are chosen rather than dictated by fashion or others,” explains creative director Domitille Brion. “It allows you to express yourself and to change your look, with accessible yet high-quality pieces, made with love and beautiful fabrics. The classic, the timeless, becomes modern, sometimes unexpected, but never overly intellectualised.” “In our sector, people used to look for value for money; now they seek value for design,” notes the CEO. “Customers are asking to invest in this ongoing pursuit, and I believe its absence is one of the factors behind the crisis in the luxury sector. Authenticity, care, traceability – today, luxury is above all about these things.”
Right from the start, Soeur has always prioritised transparency in its supply chain, first and foremost by working with manufacturers located nearby (mainly in Europe), a choice that helps to reduce transport-related CO₂ emissions; then going on to certify 70 per cent of the materials used, an increasing proportion of which are recycled (“thanks to ever-improving quality”, says the CEO), and last but not least, by implementing a rigorous audit system with the companies it works with, thanks to its membership of the specialised international organisation, the Initiative for Compliance and Sustainability: “We are very keen to maintain long-term partnerships with our manufacturers,” explains Day. The continuity of orders allows them to invest in more sustainable processes, and we all benefit from this.”
Soeur works with Italian manufacturers specialising in small leather goods, which requires tailoring-oriented production – particularly for outerwear – and sources all its yarns from Italy: ‘Your country has been far more successful than France in keeping its manufacturing sector alive and thriving,’ they note. And Italia is also one of the markets on which Soeur (which currently has 66 stores, 25 of which are outside France) is focusing in terms of retail expansion: following Milan, Rome and Padua, Florence is set to open shortly, “and if, as we believe, it proves a success, we’ll also look at other, smaller cities,” notes Day.
Meanwhile, in 2027, Soeur will celebrate the 20th anniversary of its first store in New York, and plans for China are also under consideration: “We have high hopes for that market, where customers today are more discerning and are looking less for logos and more for genuine quality,” concludes Day. “It’s a global trend and it’s not going to stop.”
