In Paris, 5 stores to find luxury items for a lot less
When shopping in Paris, you could follow the tourists to Avenue Montaigne and Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honore, where off-the-catwalk designs are displayed like venerated artwork. Or, have an adventure and save euros hunting down 'gently used' designer clothing at the city's neighbourhood depot-ventes, where Frenchwomen of exacting taste consign their castoffs.
Unlike your average thrift store (those are called friperies), the depot-vente, which translates to 'deposit and sale' is an upscale version where high-end clothing sells at a fraction of retail prices.
In the past few years, these boutiques have gained a new audience: Travellers, especially an international cadre of Gen Z-ers and millennials on the prowl for 'pre-loved' Chanel, Yves Saint Laurent, Hermes, Louis Vuitton and lesser-known labels. The attraction, of course, lies in the enduring allure and high quality of French brands — and the deeply discounted prices. It is also tethered to the role sustainability now plays in the shopping habits of younger people. Second-hand clothing is a green alternative to buying new, particularly with fast fashion's reputation for meh quality and poor working conditions. A report released by the online second-hand platform ThredUp this year predicts the resale market will be worth US$367 billion (S$482.14 billon) by 2029, increasing at three times the rate of the overall global apparel market.
'The second-hand market is driven by Gen Z and millennials who weigh the social and environmental costs of a product before buying it,' said Matteo Capellini, a sustainability expert at the consulting firm Bain & Company.
And the intense interest in high-end fashion? Thank you, TikTok. Influencers' unrelenting content plus social media marketing campaigns by Louis Vuitton, Dior, Chanel, Gucci and YSL (all routinely employ internet-famous creators) have affected younger shoppers. Parisian depot-ventes offer more affordable versions of the labels they see hyped online.
Here is a road map to the second-hand luxury scene in Paris.
TROC EN STOCK
In south Pigalle, off bustling Rue des Martyrs, Troc en Stock is a jumble of heaving racks, shoe-lined shelves and accessory-stuffed vitrines. The owner, Sophie Meyer, who has been in business for 28 years, sources merchandise (she generally sticks to clothing no more than four years old) primarily from women in the neighbourhood but also from actresses and members of the fashion media who are her clients.
She favours a mix of mid-tier designers (Sandro, IRO, Isabel Marant and Vanessa Bruno, with prices from 36 euros, or about US$39), luxury (Prada, YSL, Gucci, Balmain, a jacket costs 400 euros), and lesser-known (to Americans) French brands like Claris Virot (a bag is about 350 euros, or half of the retail price), La Prestic Ouiston and Petite Mendigote.
'Young people have lost interest in fast fashion. High-quality second hand is much more interesting to them,' said Ms. Meyer.
Troc en Stock, 6 Rue Clauzel
LORETTE & JASMIN
The elegant women populating the 16th arrondissement fuel the offerings at Lorette & Jasmin, a blink-and-you-miss-it shop on a leafy, residential street abutting Jardin de la Fondation d'Auteuil. The owner, Laurence Predo, focuses on 'the Parisian elegance of yesteryear,' as she wrote in an email, stocking Hermes (a scarf costs 130 euros), jackets from YSL, Mugler (240 euros), Dior (300 euros) and Chanel, along with pieces from now-defunct houses like Chantal Thomass (150 euros), Capucine Puerari and Lolita Lempicka.
LA BOUTIQUE DE CARA
A hallmark of les depot-ventes is their easy-going feel, contrasting with the oft-snooty vibe of luxury boutiques. This is especially true in the Marais at La Boutique de Cara, where the owner, Sarah Pinto, presides over colour-coordinated clothing racks and a piled-high accessory table with her grandmother Guila Benhamou, who has worked with her since the shop's opening 12 years ago. The offerings feature high-end luxury with more accessible clothing, think YSL blazers (190 euros), Leonard scarves and Hermes skirts (150 euros), Dior denim (220 euros), Chloe silk tops (140 euros), items by Marni, Tara Jarmon, and Maje (50 euros), and wowza pieces like a made-to-measure tulle and pearl Chanel gown from 2018 (1,200 euros). Beyond fashion deals, the shop's charm is the cross-generational style advice dispensed by both women.
THE PARISIAN VINTAGE
Jules Jensen and Alex Sabatakakis began selling their grandmothers' caches of classic Jean-Louis Scherrer, Louis Feraud, Guy Laroche and Courreges at pop-ups. In 2021, they opened the Parisian Vintage in the Marais, inspired by the classic depot-vente but enhancing their appeal to a younger audience with an au courant website and constantly refreshed Instagram and TikTok accounts. Their vision? Showcasing pristine (often vintage), less predictable pieces (lots of leather, suede and statement blazers) from designers like Kenzo (a bag from the '90s, 300 euros), Celine, Moschino, John Galliano for Dior (blazer, 650 euros) and YSL (a jacket from the '80s, 550 euros) with more niche Parisian labels such as Sylvie Schimmel (from 110 euros), Angelo Tarlazzi and Jean Claude Jitrois, many with original price tags. Recently, the couple added men's wear and a floor for bags and shoes.
The Parisian Vintage, 20 Rue Saint-Claude
OPEN DRESSING
Also in the Marais is Open Dressing, where, since 2020, the owner Alexia Marchand's philosophy of mixing and matching decades and styles is on display with racks of contemporary designers (Coperni, Khaite and Jacquemus from 300 euros) alongside hard-to-source high fashion (a Tom Ford-era Gucci leather jacket, 1,200 euros); vintage Hermes; YSL embroidered bolero and smoking jackets from the '70s, and '80s lingerie (Oscar de la Renta and Nina Ricci dressing gowns, pyjamas, and velvet quilted robe by YSL) which double as ready-to-wear (300 to 500 euros). 'Why wouldn't people want to discover a unique piece from an iconic designer at a lower cost?' said Marchand.
Open Dressing, 63 Rue de Turenne
Amy Tara Koch © The New York Times.
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