Paul & Joe returns to Paris

From Tokyo, Japan, where a diner-style Paul & Joe café has just opened, Sophie Mechaly spoke with us over zoom to explain her brand’s return to Paris Fashion Week. The brand, which was created in 1995 by the French entrepreneur, has been showing in London since 2021.

“The opportunity to show in London was incredible,” says the manager. “It’s an effervescent place when it comes to design, with great name references and sometimes very eccentric young designers. And it put us in contact with lots of cool girls and cool kids. It gave us a different kind of visibility. It was a great experience, but it was time to come back to our country and our city. Of course, there are economic reasons, because putting on a runway show is very expensive. It’s not an obstacle because the company is doing very well and is successful, but it’s mostly because I wanted something different.”

On September 29, the brand will showcase a presentation in a building that dates back to the Middle Ages. In the fairytale atmosphere of the Hôtel de la Bûcherie, in the capital’s 5th arrondissement, the brand will unveil its women’s Spring/Summer 2023 collection at 4pm.

“I wanted to break away from the frenzy of the fashion shows,” says Sophie Mechaly. “I wanted our customers, the press and the brand’s fans to take the time to discover the collection, with our fifteen or so beautiful young women strolling around in a magical atmosphere. We’re fortunate to be able to work in confidence with workshops in France, in the north of France for the embroidery, in Tarbes for the bouclette, and in the Paris region for the manufacturing. It’s also a way of showing off their work in detail. Our strength in working with these experts, who collaborate with some of the world’s leading luxury brands, is the trust we’ve built up over the past 28 years. It’s loyalty and fidelity, and it allows us to be competitive.”

The brand, which assumes that it has moved upmarket, explains that it works on series of 200 to 400 pieces with suppliers in France and Europe. According to its founder, this proximity enables it to stand out from a number of premium players, which has helped the brand work towards a 20% growth in sales (without specifying the figure) since the beginning of the year compared to 2022, notably driven by the return of ceremonies.

In this respect, the brand is also benefiting from the activity of its numerous licenses around the world. The founder has also launched her own brand, Boys don’t cry: a premium multi-brand for men, featuring designer brands such as Bode, Wales Bonner and JW Anderson, as well as Paul&Joe Homme. A new growth driver for the label’s activities.