Is Sézane worth it?
Short answer: Yes.
Longer answer: Sézane offers — mostly! — beautifully made clothes at — generally! — a fair price. In return for that price, you will receive an item of genuine style and (usually) value.
The highest ROI pieces in my wardrobe are from Sézane. (Some of the lowest ROI pieces as well, but we’ll get to that.) It represents the easiest way to buy into “Parisian chic,” with presentations, special collections, and collaborations arriving online every few weeks. (Perhaps, in fact, too many presentations, and the specter of becoming “fast fashion.”)
The clothes that have earned me the most compliments, that I love the most, and that I feel best in (and aren’t athleisure) are 90% from Sézane. For me, Sézane is worth it — the extra cost, and the disagreeableness of buying from an overseas brand (and the price inconstancies that can mean).
Let’s dig into it.
So what is Sézane?
Sézane is the Paris-chic brand owned — still — by Morgane Sézalory, a French entrepreneur. Prior to launching Sézane, Sézalory lived in London, where she sold vintage fashion and home goods on eBay, creating monthly, 100-piece collections that would sell out in minutes. From that project, Les Composantes, came Sézane (the brand a mash-up of her first and last name): Launched online in 2013 as a direct-to-consumer brand with dresses, blouses, and tops, it now has shops in nearly a half-dozen countries — France, the U.S., the U.K., Belgium, and Spain — and has expanded from women’s to include fashion for men, children, and babies, plus homewares and accessories.
While Sézane has taken on sizable private equity investment, Morgane Sézalory is still the majority owner. Those investments are behind many buyers concerns that the brand has moved into the realm of “fast fashion”: trading high quality materials for lesser ones, and rushing collections to the market without the specialness that has made Sézane so popular until now. For now, style is winning — I’m optimistic, but cautious, and occasionally concerned. We’ll get to that.
Sézane: My ALL-TIME Favorite Pieces
Honestly, I could have easily added five more: Where is the Chlo?? The Gaspard? The Johnson coat — never have I ever gotten so many compliments on a single piece of clothing; it’s perfect for early fall and late spring. The Dorothea — baby loves a square neck! And the Abelia is the classic “going out” top, whether worn with jeans or something tidier. I literally can’t believe it costs $125.
Sézane: The Pros
1. It just looks great. Sézalory and her team simply have that perfect rendering of distinctly French yet accessible style. You can see it in all three pieces above: not staid nor trendy. They will look good today and they will look great in the seasons to come. I bought my Johnson coat five years ago, and after a few trips to the dry cleaner, it’s style beautiful. Same with the Abélia, though I bought it in ecru and wish now I had chosen a safer black. You cannot tell me that Dorothea dress won’t be appropriate for summer parties for the foreseeable future. Sézane makes cool, interesting, clothing, with another whimsical weirdos thrown in that you’ll find something you like whether you want “the perfect” car coat (i.e. the Johnson) or a raffia bustier.
It’s not foolproof — for example, there’s a collection of seashell necklaces no one should be buying outside of a gift shop at the Aruba Hilton — but I trust that with every collection, I’ll find several things that will enhance my wardrobe, and by extension, my life. I trust Sézane, and I am rewarded for that trust.
2. Longevity. As I say above, I’ve had my favorite pieces for years. This is thanks to two factors: the quality of the garments and the style. I agree with many commenters that the quality seems to have fallen in recent years (post-private equity) — but I style view it as higher-than-typical for the price. The only Sézane piece I’ve lost to time was a beautiful black silk summer dress that came back from the dry cleaner’s with a giant pink spot on it. (I cried.)
As to the style: Sézane is similar to many French mid-market brands in the way it manages to channel current trends without giving over to them too much (I’m thinking of Soeur, Sessun, and APC more than Sandro and Maje).
Together, this is the essence of French shopping: buy less, buy better, buy for the long-haul. Sézane allows for all of that.
3. Good corporate citizenry. As a plain-Jane member of the buying community, I can’t know for sure that Sézane is as responsible as its marketing materials would have us believe. I know that it created and continues to support Demain, which “aims to reduce inequalities and ensure equitable access to resources, opportunities, and care.” And I see the transparency in its protections for workers, which includes auditing standards like ERSA, BSCI, SMETA, SA 8000, ICS, and WCA. I hope they are what they seem to be.
Sézane: The COns
2. Occasionally spotty quality. Definitely more of an issue in later years, which gives haters (including early adopter fans) more ammunition for their argument that outside investors have demanded higher profits and therefore shoddier material. I only have one pair of their shoes, with braided straps and a solid-wood platform: beautiful and well made. But I’ve seen plenty of complaints about the build and durability of their shoes, pilling on the knitwear, and inferior quality materials, particularly with the tops.
3. Customer service is often poor. Is it poor or is it French? It’s probably both. Service in the shops can be brusque at best, at least in France, and supercilious in the U.S. Deliveries can be slow, and returns accepted with grumbling. This usually isn’t an issue for me, as I mostly buy online and I’ve actually never returned anything.
4. The cost. It’s not cheap. I believe it absolutely succeeds on a cost-per-wear basis, but you can’t get around the fact that it’s $350 for a coat, $200 for a top.
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