How the French Do DTC

On a freezing Monday night in Madrid’s upscale Salamanca neighbourhood, a long line of shoppers wait outside Spain’s only Sézane store. The scene – reminiscent of shoppers queuing outside luxury boutiques post-pandemic – is not unique to Sézane, but rather a testament to the appeal of new wave French DTC brands. Customers regularly wait hours to enter handbag-maker Polène’s stoles; Rouje’s first Paris location, opened in 2019, was packed from day one.

Sézane, Rouje and Polène…