Re-introducing: Soeur
At Couverture, we're very pleased to announce that, once again, we are offering a selection from the esteemed Parisian-brand Soeur. Borrowing from menswear for an ever more feminine allure, the brand creates garments that embody a modern vision of femininity. A vision defined by sincerity, elegance, agelessness and inclusivity.
We sat down with the brand’s Managing Director, Freja Day, for a whistle-stop re-introduction to Soeur. A fascinating conversation that revealed much. About how menswear can inform a modern womenswear brand and their in-house pattern team. As well as Soeur’s humane approach, not just to forging relationships with suppliers, but also in their true commitment to sustainability. Rare traits, but ones that we hold in the highest esteem at Couverture.
Tell us a bit about Soeur, about the brand's origins and its ethos.
Soeur was founded in Paris in 2007, with the desire to dress women from day to night with elegant, authentic, and distinctive designs. The brand is renowned for its specific vision of shapes and colours, high-quality materials, as well as oversized garments, inspired by menswear.
Our ethos is best summarised with this quote by Domitille Brion, Soeur’s founder and creative director:
“Soeur is a wardrobe that blurs the lines, an open-plan wardrobe, which borrows from menswear for an ever more feminine allure. These are pieces that express a modern and inspiring vision of femininity: sincere, sensitive, elegant, inclusive. Style exists independent of age. I want everyone who dresses in our designs to feel understood and valued."
What kind of woman encapsulates Soeur as a brand?
Soeur targets a large variety of women. If I had to define a main profile, I would say, an urban and active woman. One who is aware of fashion and culture, with a distinctive sense of style. She is demanding in terms of cut, material, and quality.
What are your biggest sources of inspiration?
Soeur has a strong cultural footprint and is strongly inspired by craftsmanship, design, menswear, and tailoring. We take inspiration from paintings or memories from our travels to develop our colour palette and choice of materials each season.
The shape of your clothes is incredibly well-defined. How have the clean lines and loose, flowing silhouettes that make Soeur come to be established?
Thanks!
This is very important to Domitille. In French, we say "Sens du détail." For us, details are important. Domitille holds very high standards when it comes to cuts and product details. In our office, we have a team of in-house pattern makers who focus on reworking and creating tailor-made pieces. This process is very rare in our high contemporary fashion category, and we believe it is part of the secret to the success of our products.
What is your approach to design and production? How do you set yourselves apart from other brands?
We place the design process and product quality at the core of everything we do. A good product is
the best way to make a brand successful. What distinguishes us lately is our proper style, with key brand codes that are renewed each season. We also know how to introduce new designs that are anchored in current fashion trends every season.
We've seen that you work to build close relationships with those who manufacture your clothing. Can you tell us more about this and why it is important?
It is very important to have a better understanding of their work process, their innovations, and how they can help us improve ours. It is also crucial for us on a human level, as we build great relationships with our suppliers, which is always beneficial for our creative process.
Why do you think it's so important for your brand to place an emphasis on sustainability in today's retail climate?
It is a major subject that is not easy to tackle. The only way to go about it is by being pragmatic and humble. At Soeur, we want our pieces to be beautiful inside and out. We have 3 major focus areas in our sustainability strategy:
1. Sustainable partnerships: We build strong, long-term partnerships, with about half of our suppliers working with us for over six years, and some for more than 15! This stability allows them to invest in people and infrastructure. We personally visit factories and audit all of them each season through an independent auditor. As part of the Initiative for Compliance and Sustainability (ICS), we optimise audits in collaboration with other brands and improve factory ratings.
2. Sustainable products: Defining our ambitious eco-responsible standards: At SOEUR, an eco-responsible product contains at least 70% eco-responsible material, and we are increasing our use of low-impact materials. These materials are organic, recycled, or certified by international standards like GOTS, LWG, GRS, or OCS. With help from an in-house textile expert and an external advisor, about 50% of our collection meets these strict norms. Including Oeko-Tex products, around 80% of the collection is certified. However, we believe Oeko-Tex alone is not sufficient for eco-responsibility. We strive to be the best in class!
3. Carbon Footprint: We conducted our very first carbon footprint study in 2022. We were happy to discover that we were slightly below the industry average on a comparable basis! However, our goal is to challenge ourselves and further reduce our footprint in the coming years.
What a truly amazing, inspirational and admirable brand and process you have. Time for a far easier question, what is your favourite Soeur piece from the most recent collection.
The CESAR coat, an iconic piece made with Cashmere - it's the first time we've worked on a coat of such quality, it fits perfectly! (This will be part of the Soeur Collection at Couverture soon...)
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