Sézane founder Morgane Sézalory on how to dress French
If you're not already aware of online-first Parisian clothing label Sézane, then quite frankly, you're missing out. Especially if you're as obsessed with French style as we are.
Behind the cult brand is the effortlessly stylish genius that is Morgane Sézalory, who we like to think of as the French Girlboss. Why the comparison? Bear with us.
Although she launched the concept of Sézane in 2013, she entered the fashion world earlier, in the way of hunting for vintage treasures, and selling them off to great success.
'My sister and I loved to hunt for vintage bargains,' Morgane told us when met her at the Sézane Appartement in Paris.
'She then went to live in London and left bags of some vintage cool pieces. At first I kept things for myself, but then I thought I could make some pocket money by selling them on eBay. The first products I put up sold out for 300 euros or 500 euros. What made the difference were that my pictures were bright, all the others were dark, or you couldn't see the products,' she added.
How to set up your own fashion business
Morgane was soon making 6,000 euros a month, and decided take things to the next level by selling her vintage finds on her own site. Demand was so high that creating her own designs was the next logical step.
'I could only put up 100 pieces for sale a month, so I curated the pieces, took styled pictures, and would give my customers one rendez-vous a month at a specific time and day to buy them - everything would sell out after five minutes. Sometimes they would be so frustrated, so I realised I should start to create my own pieces to sell alongside the vintage ones,' she says.
Except Morgane's designs were so popular, she decided to focus on those by creating a new label and store: Sézane (a combination of her last and first names) was born and just kept on growing.
It's fair to say it has since amassed a cult following, no doubt thanks to its monthly curated collections that are the epitome in French fashion: trendy yet wearable pieces, always with a dose of chic.
So we have the clothes, but is that all it takes to dress like a Parisian? We grilled Morgane on what makes French style so special.
Is there a secret to dressing like a Parisian?
'I think there is a culture to not show that you take your time to look good; so that’s a big thing about French people. We have iconic French women who are very natural, and so people try to emulate this. To me, the true beauty of being French, is being beautiful and smart, and to be beautiful and smart you have to look like you didn’t spend too much time looking beautiful, you know?'
What fashion items do most Parisian women own?
'A white shirt in silk or cotton, a perfect pair of jeans, and then a natural bag, like Jane Birkin in the 70s. I think that's the perfect, ideal iconic look.'
A new capsule collection launches online at Sézane every month, and you can also shop the collection in store at the newly refurbished Sézane Apparetement 1 rue saint Fiacre 75002 Paris.
