Siblings Elsa, Mathieu, and Antoine Mothay — the grandchildren of the founder of French ready-to-wear brand Saint James — launched Polène out of Paris in 2016 with ambitions to “capture the essence of a true leather goods house,” Antoine explains, “which we identified as creativity.” (Antoine is now the CEO and the sole family member still involved in the brand, and is directly responsible for operations, finance, creative direction, and production.) The passed-down sartorial know-how is evident: Polène began with the Numéro Un, and now has thirteen handbag styles (or “collections,” as it bills them), priced between $460 to $690 — luxury sans the status premium — as well as three different jewelry lines.
