thanks for this!! When I first started seeing Quince, it sounded EXACTLY like Everlane's marketing language/price explanations from 8-10 years ago, only the prices are even lower. Indeed, it doesn't add up
Their Jenni Kayne dupes are way higher in quality. I’ll never buy another Jk again. Sorry. Hers pill and look like crap but my Quince ones look great. Maybe I got lucky but so far so good. I’ll save my money where I can.
I agree with you on Jenni Kayne - I have a few of their sweaters that are horrible quality (one or two are nice, but that's the exception not the rule). I had a fairly new cashmere from them...wore it twice and it got a hole in it. They refused to take it back. I'll never shop from there again. I don't like Quince either (great article!), but at least if your $50 sweater falls apart it's easier to take than if your $350 one does!
You make some excellent points but the one I didn’t see is that the viral brands that Quince knocks off are already ripping people off with their campaigns to be “essential”. With giant marketing budgets to send free product to influencers they do their darndest to be ubiquitous. If that leaves room for another company to come in with a lower priced version I have a hard time feeling sorry for them.
I have much more sympathy for the small designer who gets into Anthropologie, only to have their designs copied for the next season, or the Amazon supplier who gets driven out of existence by an “Essential”.
Agree with this point. I think what you initially said is a sorely missed point for most. The example from Toteme above is what got me thinking the same, the CRAZY price point is a total ripoff to begin with, hard to feel about for those versus the smaller entrepreneurs.
But I guess I’m also wondering why Toteme’s scarf jacket that’s 12% polyester and made in China makes sense from a pricing standpoint? DTC companies like Quince producing dupes at like 20% of the price will always exist for as long as polyester blend high price points made in China do. Regular working people just can’t afford the world that influencers have created.
Thank you! I think this article raises some good criticisms, but other than thrifting and just buying less, not many reasonable solutions IMO. The markup on those brands makes them pretty unaffordable (and I’m not convinced the quality warrants those prices)
I don’t know about the others, but I will say at least Clare V is excellent quality. I bought it used from RTR, but my Clare V bag is solid and gorgeous, and if I had the money, I would purchase from them new.
I’ve been shopping at Quince since this time last year when I did (and continue to have) big size changes and the convenience of the brands really gave me peace of mind while I truly started from scratch. And maybe I was just seeing what I wanted to see, but since I never wanted their handbags or the more viral dupe-things, I just wanted alpaca cardigans and linen shirts, it took me way too long to even realize that’s what they were doing. But I think your points are fair and I’ll reconsider shopping there in the future.
Yeah, same for me-- I've changed sizes considerably and neither my geographic area nor my size/height are good for thrifting. I'm not on social media beyond Substack & don't go for trends on quince, just some replacement sweaters and pants for work, and I've had no issues with the quality. Also my daughter hasn't worn through her school uniform cardigan from there (and no pilling yet), and as a 6 year old obviously she's not gentle on her things! I'm not saying anyone else should be buying there but I've not had any issues (and I don't think I have rock bottom expectations/standards or anything!)
The plus-size thrift issue is SO real and it drives me crazy when straight size folks are like, “ANYONE can thrift these classic pieces!” Um…no. I still thrift but it takes a lot more luck and patience than someone who’s 5’5 and a size six.
Lifelong thrifter at 5’10” and a size 10/12/14 lolololol LOL, yes please find me vintage linen that covers my DDD+ boobs long enough to cover half my arm or leg. It’s so tired at this point. And we don’t all want to buy mens and alter it. Been there.
Yes to this!! There’s a high end consignment store near me that I WANT TO LOVE but 85% of the pieces in the store are XS/S/2/4. I’m in there DIGGING for a M/L/8/10…and when I mentioned this to the owner her response was so close to gaslighting that I wanted to scream.
Thank you!!! The podcast ads claiming Quince is sustainable, ethical - when their credentials for these claims are non existent - drive me crazy. No evidence they pay employees a living wage, no evidence of waste reduction or reduced water usage
I am 110% with you on all of this. I believe these Dupes are theft, plain and simple. And before everyone comes for me, if I can’t afford it, or don’t want to spend it, I don’t buy it. Stealing someone’s art is not cool. People work damned hard and make great personal sacrifices to become designers (for the record, I am neither a “creative” nor in the business). Their work should be respected and honored, not stolen.
I had one experience with Quince and vowed never again (and this right before the wave of influencers pushing the brand).
I wanted a silk maxi skirt and ordered one from them; thankful to my past self for just buying that one thing and not going all in with the cart. Received it and was immediately disappointed—major Lilysilk flashbacks (another brand I won’t buy from)—subpar quality, misleading or lacking description (labeled maxi but clearly a midi, which is personally a pet peeve of mine), just something I KNEW wouldn’t last a year of actual wear. Requested a return and got some sassy customer service in response, but I did get my money back.
Vowed never again and held strong, didn’t do any other looking into besides my own experience, and now feel nice and justified 😎
Similar experience here. Bought their silk slip dress a few years ago. The length was awkward. The way it was constructed made the whole thing feel kind of like a children's nightie. I wore it once and sold it within 6 months.
In my experience and my opinion, their construction quality is subpar. Disclaimer, I’ve only had their silk products, but if the construction is bad on one line, it doesn’t bode well for the rest. Simply put, the pieces didn’t hold up (used normally and washed by hand and still tore at the seams within… weeks, if I remember correctly). I’ve found much higher quality silk garments sourcing secondhand vintage.
Also, their customer service was straight-up rude, given that one piece was literally tearing at the seams within a few uses.
as someone who was (also) formerly employed by a venture backed DTC fashion brand, i feel very seen in my distrust of all things VC-funded (particularly fashion). thanks for laying this all out 🙏🏻
I have had good experiences with quince, although I agree their shift towards knocking off trending contemporary brands in the last year or two is off putting. I started buying from quince maybe 5 years ago when the “elevated basics” positioning felt honest. I have had linen bedding, silk camisoles, black trousers, simple teas that have lasted years. It’s hard to argue that these were knock offs, nor that these were fast fashion. The 1 year return policy is legit and when I have had problems with products, they have done the right thing.
I am a parent of four growing teens and there are basics they need as they grow. My kids are all moving from Texas to cold climates, so they need warmer jackets and layers. I have found that quince offers a better price for quality deal than Zara, JCrew or Target.
And I love buying vintage or second hand, but sometimes it’s not possible to find something I actually need when I need it.
And let’s be honest. All of fashion is about dupes. Every brand watches trends on runways and in social media. Very few mid market or contemporary brands aren’t at least inspired by the work of others, past or present.
I totally agree with you, though, on being real about whether something is a need or a want. There are things I want in my wardrobe, and that’s okay, but they aren’t needs. I try to be very thoughtful about this. My goal is to buy no more than 5 pieces of new clothing this year, excluding basics like underwear and the cold weather gear I will need moving to a new climate.
I started shopping at Quince quite a few years ago too. I was surprised when they started direct comparisons with other brands on their site-I use to have a small handbag line and thought it was in bad taste. Having said that, is a linen shirt really a dupe? I have them from everywhere and Quince has good linen, bad bags and I bought a lot of their cashmere and have been unhappy I did! I wanted new oversized shapes but the pilling has been terrible! I will say customer service has been very good. I didn’t know about how they were fined etc. just a woman who needed to rebuild her wardrobe.
Yes! I have been feeling this way about quince for a while. What really put me over the edge: Recently I bought my first pair of Freda Salvador shoes. They’re expensive! I saved up! I immediately started getting ton of ads for quinces very obvious dupe of one of Freda’s most popular shoes and it just felt ..really gross.
Came specifically to also say their Freda flat dupe made me so mad!! Flats are so hard to make comfortable and my Freda ones are the only ones I can walk all day in. I am highly skeptical the Quince ones would be the same.
I almost bought the Quince dupe yesterday because even after the Friends + Family sale, the woven flats from Freda Salvador still seemed so expensive. But I went with my gut and ultimately got the Freda ones because they just seemed better quality.
I always just assumed Quince was fast fashion and avoided (wasn’t paying attention to their DTC ads, I guess) but i did buy a cashmere sweater in a pinch and the quality was TERRIBLE. I only wore it one season before it got holes. I’ve been hearing more and more about the dupe stuff and it’s just one more reason not to buy!
This is interesting to me. I’ve bought multiple Quince cashmere sweaters and I actually wear them multiple times a week. I find the quality to be on par with other brands like Theory. They def don’t fall apart and I even throw them in the wash (not the dryer)
That makes so much sense! I was sort of flabbergasted at first and worried I had moths but none of my other (beautiful) cashmere sweaters that I have had for years had holes.
Thank you so much for writing this!! Quince has been giving me an ick ever since it came out and I've never been able to put my finger on why.
Spot on: this brand is ick incarnate.
Same!!
Order 1 item from quince last year - until
I placed the order I didn’t realize it was a direct from China company. Quality was ok, but not great. Price was ok but not great.
Overall I came away with the feeling that Quince was/is SHEIN for grownups.
Your last sentence 💯
thanks for this!! When I first started seeing Quince, it sounded EXACTLY like Everlane's marketing language/price explanations from 8-10 years ago, only the prices are even lower. Indeed, it doesn't add up
Their Jenni Kayne dupes are way higher in quality. I’ll never buy another Jk again. Sorry. Hers pill and look like crap but my Quince ones look great. Maybe I got lucky but so far so good. I’ll save my money where I can.
I agree with you on Jenni Kayne - I have a few of their sweaters that are horrible quality (one or two are nice, but that's the exception not the rule). I had a fairly new cashmere from them...wore it twice and it got a hole in it. They refused to take it back. I'll never shop from there again. I don't like Quince either (great article!), but at least if your $50 sweater falls apart it's easier to take than if your $350 one does!
Ooh that’s good to know. I was trying to decide if they were worth the cost but it looks like a no
You make some excellent points but the one I didn’t see is that the viral brands that Quince knocks off are already ripping people off with their campaigns to be “essential”. With giant marketing budgets to send free product to influencers they do their darndest to be ubiquitous. If that leaves room for another company to come in with a lower priced version I have a hard time feeling sorry for them.
I have much more sympathy for the small designer who gets into Anthropologie, only to have their designs copied for the next season, or the Amazon supplier who gets driven out of existence by an “Essential”.
Agree with this point. I think what you initially said is a sorely missed point for most. The example from Toteme above is what got me thinking the same, the CRAZY price point is a total ripoff to begin with, hard to feel about for those versus the smaller entrepreneurs.
But I guess I’m also wondering why Toteme’s scarf jacket that’s 12% polyester and made in China makes sense from a pricing standpoint? DTC companies like Quince producing dupes at like 20% of the price will always exist for as long as polyester blend high price points made in China do. Regular working people just can’t afford the world that influencers have created.
Thank you! I think this article raises some good criticisms, but other than thrifting and just buying less, not many reasonable solutions IMO. The markup on those brands makes them pretty unaffordable (and I’m not convinced the quality warrants those prices)
I don’t know about the others, but I will say at least Clare V is excellent quality. I bought it used from RTR, but my Clare V bag is solid and gorgeous, and if I had the money, I would purchase from them new.
I’ve been shopping at Quince since this time last year when I did (and continue to have) big size changes and the convenience of the brands really gave me peace of mind while I truly started from scratch. And maybe I was just seeing what I wanted to see, but since I never wanted their handbags or the more viral dupe-things, I just wanted alpaca cardigans and linen shirts, it took me way too long to even realize that’s what they were doing. But I think your points are fair and I’ll reconsider shopping there in the future.
Yeah, same for me-- I've changed sizes considerably and neither my geographic area nor my size/height are good for thrifting. I'm not on social media beyond Substack & don't go for trends on quince, just some replacement sweaters and pants for work, and I've had no issues with the quality. Also my daughter hasn't worn through her school uniform cardigan from there (and no pilling yet), and as a 6 year old obviously she's not gentle on her things! I'm not saying anyone else should be buying there but I've not had any issues (and I don't think I have rock bottom expectations/standards or anything!)
The plus-size thrift issue is SO real and it drives me crazy when straight size folks are like, “ANYONE can thrift these classic pieces!” Um…no. I still thrift but it takes a lot more luck and patience than someone who’s 5’5 and a size six.
Lifelong thrifter at 5’10” and a size 10/12/14 lolololol LOL, yes please find me vintage linen that covers my DDD+ boobs long enough to cover half my arm or leg. It’s so tired at this point. And we don’t all want to buy mens and alter it. Been there.
Yes to this!! There’s a high end consignment store near me that I WANT TO LOVE but 85% of the pieces in the store are XS/S/2/4. I’m in there DIGGING for a M/L/8/10…and when I mentioned this to the owner her response was so close to gaslighting that I wanted to scream.
Yup! And the higher that size you’re looking for goes, the harder it gets!
Erin can we be friends!!!
❤️
Thank you!!! The podcast ads claiming Quince is sustainable, ethical - when their credentials for these claims are non existent - drive me crazy. No evidence they pay employees a living wage, no evidence of waste reduction or reduced water usage
I am 110% with you on all of this. I believe these Dupes are theft, plain and simple. And before everyone comes for me, if I can’t afford it, or don’t want to spend it, I don’t buy it. Stealing someone’s art is not cool. People work damned hard and make great personal sacrifices to become designers (for the record, I am neither a “creative” nor in the business). Their work should be respected and honored, not stolen.
I had one experience with Quince and vowed never again (and this right before the wave of influencers pushing the brand).
I wanted a silk maxi skirt and ordered one from them; thankful to my past self for just buying that one thing and not going all in with the cart. Received it and was immediately disappointed—major Lilysilk flashbacks (another brand I won’t buy from)—subpar quality, misleading or lacking description (labeled maxi but clearly a midi, which is personally a pet peeve of mine), just something I KNEW wouldn’t last a year of actual wear. Requested a return and got some sassy customer service in response, but I did get my money back.
Vowed never again and held strong, didn’t do any other looking into besides my own experience, and now feel nice and justified 😎
Similar experience here. Bought their silk slip dress a few years ago. The length was awkward. The way it was constructed made the whole thing feel kind of like a children's nightie. I wore it once and sold it within 6 months.
“Children’s nightie,” I know exactly what you mean!
Can you enlighten me on lilysilk? I was looking at the site but something felt off, couldn’t place what.
Oh, I forgot: they also run the same shady influencer game that Quince does!
In my experience and my opinion, their construction quality is subpar. Disclaimer, I’ve only had their silk products, but if the construction is bad on one line, it doesn’t bode well for the rest. Simply put, the pieces didn’t hold up (used normally and washed by hand and still tore at the seams within… weeks, if I remember correctly). I’ve found much higher quality silk garments sourcing secondhand vintage.
Also, their customer service was straight-up rude, given that one piece was literally tearing at the seams within a few uses.
as someone who was (also) formerly employed by a venture backed DTC fashion brand, i feel very seen in my distrust of all things VC-funded (particularly fashion). thanks for laying this all out 🙏🏻
I have had good experiences with quince, although I agree their shift towards knocking off trending contemporary brands in the last year or two is off putting. I started buying from quince maybe 5 years ago when the “elevated basics” positioning felt honest. I have had linen bedding, silk camisoles, black trousers, simple teas that have lasted years. It’s hard to argue that these were knock offs, nor that these were fast fashion. The 1 year return policy is legit and when I have had problems with products, they have done the right thing.
I am a parent of four growing teens and there are basics they need as they grow. My kids are all moving from Texas to cold climates, so they need warmer jackets and layers. I have found that quince offers a better price for quality deal than Zara, JCrew or Target.
And I love buying vintage or second hand, but sometimes it’s not possible to find something I actually need when I need it.
And let’s be honest. All of fashion is about dupes. Every brand watches trends on runways and in social media. Very few mid market or contemporary brands aren’t at least inspired by the work of others, past or present.
I totally agree with you, though, on being real about whether something is a need or a want. There are things I want in my wardrobe, and that’s okay, but they aren’t needs. I try to be very thoughtful about this. My goal is to buy no more than 5 pieces of new clothing this year, excluding basics like underwear and the cold weather gear I will need moving to a new climate.
I started shopping at Quince quite a few years ago too. I was surprised when they started direct comparisons with other brands on their site-I use to have a small handbag line and thought it was in bad taste. Having said that, is a linen shirt really a dupe? I have them from everywhere and Quince has good linen, bad bags and I bought a lot of their cashmere and have been unhappy I did! I wanted new oversized shapes but the pilling has been terrible! I will say customer service has been very good. I didn’t know about how they were fined etc. just a woman who needed to rebuild her wardrobe.
Yes! I have been feeling this way about quince for a while. What really put me over the edge: Recently I bought my first pair of Freda Salvador shoes. They’re expensive! I saved up! I immediately started getting ton of ads for quinces very obvious dupe of one of Freda’s most popular shoes and it just felt ..really gross.
Came specifically to also say their Freda flat dupe made me so mad!! Flats are so hard to make comfortable and my Freda ones are the only ones I can walk all day in. I am highly skeptical the Quince ones would be the same.
I almost bought the Quince dupe yesterday because even after the Friends + Family sale, the woven flats from Freda Salvador still seemed so expensive. But I went with my gut and ultimately got the Freda ones because they just seemed better quality.
I can vouch that the Freda ones are SO comfortable and I can guess based on the quality of things I’ve purchased from Quince that theirs won’t be
As someone who's worked in apparel and accessories buying for the majority of their career, a hard agree to all of this.
You don’t need it! There will always be something else!! Man you are preaching a sermon today and I am sat!!
I always just assumed Quince was fast fashion and avoided (wasn’t paying attention to their DTC ads, I guess) but i did buy a cashmere sweater in a pinch and the quality was TERRIBLE. I only wore it one season before it got holes. I’ve been hearing more and more about the dupe stuff and it’s just one more reason not to buy!
Great read, Devon!
This is interesting to me. I’ve bought multiple Quince cashmere sweaters and I actually wear them multiple times a week. I find the quality to be on par with other brands like Theory. They def don’t fall apart and I even throw them in the wash (not the dryer)
I am guessing they must be using short fiber yarn. Might be cashmere, but that is the lowest quality that will pill, thin, misshape and fall apart.
Unfortunately I am increasingly finding this to be the case even with higher end (and rather expensive) brands.
That makes so much sense! I was sort of flabbergasted at first and worried I had moths but none of my other (beautiful) cashmere sweaters that I have had for years had holes.