The Rise and Fall of Polène
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- čas přidán 27. 05. 2024
- From being a new exciting Parisian company that sold perfectly alluring designs that came in high quality to turning into a complete hit or miss, Polène has joined the ranks of luxury brands we praised too soon. But how did this happen? How did Polène become a cautionary tale? Let’s analyze its story together.
Here are the videos I made about Polène: • Polène Determines The ...
• What The Hell Is Happe...
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Coach remains king (or queen) at the entry level luxury price point. I will die on this hill 😅
I say the same about comic book characters. Me: "Why do you have your initials on everything you wear? If they can't recognize you otherwise then your costume is crap!" @@thefoxontheroad876
Not all of them do.
@@thefoxontheroad876 They have plenty of bags without a tacky logo design.
@@thefoxontheroad876agree I hate their logo
I agree, Coach is an old company that has grown, had ups and downs, and has branched out to own other companies as Tapestry. It has a bigger store chain system, bigger budget and established manufacturing facilities. They can eat their mistakes and survive without taking a huge hit to their reputation. Coach has value and variety and still give you room to save for real symbols of money if not luxury, real estate. If you must have something that has value for a decent price point from Hermes, go for the custom saddle measured for your horse, I believe its much cheaper than a Birkin.
I Ordered 5 bags from Polene that is how impressed i was with the Brand. But unfortunatly 2 never came. When i reach out to the Brand the Tell me to file a police case for a refund which is ridiculous. My money is gone and my bags never arrived. The Customer Service is horriable. I am so diapointed will never buy again from them
If you pay using Paypal, you can recover your money if you report it to them
Tell your card company the items were never received, you just have to file a claim. And they will refund you the money and the card company will go after them.
But that is horrible customer service either way.
Why did you need 5 whole bags for?
Why are you in her business? Who cares if she wants 5 bags. She can have what she wants. Stop pocket watching weirdo. The main question is why didn’t she receive a refund for what was never provided.
influencers honestly ruin everything. the minute more than 4-5 influencers start promoting a brand it loses all value in my eyes
It was the Princess of Wales, not influencers. She sent it skyrocketing and that’s when it spun out.
@@lizziebkennedy7505 the influencers afterwards started the mass marketing towards the general public, who found it much ‘affordable’ compared to brands like chanel and wanted a ‘luxury’ item for themselves so they bought polene’s items in a frenzy. This is especially since the whole quiet luxury aesthetic is on the rise and the general middle class want to be seen as rich and as stealth wealth even though they aren’t. I’ve seen influencers i follow be GIFTED these bags while polene’s quality keeps decreasing with each passing day.
yeah feels annoying that they get them all for free -- it turns me off from spending $$ with them
@@lizziebkennedy7505the Princess is like the ultímate influencer.
Wish I had bought a bag from Polene before they got so popular. The new prices seem appropriate for their previous level of quality and I hope they can get back to that. If not, the brand is likely to crash and burn.
Polene was stupid. They should have put people on a waiting list until they could safely increase manufacturing without sacrificing quality. I can’t buy anything from them now.
After hearing all of the complaints, I am thinking the same. I was definitely about to buy one this week but I am so happy I saw this video (wasn't even looking for any news on Polene just popped up) and then saw all the other reviews and complaints on IG. I will keep my hard earned money.
I also think the same. I'm browsing through their store, but reading your comments here made me change my mind.
I will stay tuned because I really, really want one. This is saddening.
And that is why I decided to not purchase any Polene bags... All the negative comments on quality issues + bad customer experience made me turn away from the brand. Pity.
I went to the boutique in Paris. Yes, customer service needs major improvement.
Agree, I went to the store in Paris, was there for 15 min and no one came to help.
lol I’m going to the Paris store next week… if service is bad, I’m leaving empty handed.
I went to their stores in Paris last week and needed to wait in lines for both, even it was a weekday. The stores were crowded but as long as you ask the staff for help, the service was great
I got bags from them over the years, I see the quality changing very clearly. Recently I got a second hand Polene and it was bought in 2020, ohhhh that great quality for half of the price! Hoping they get these issues fixed, I still love the brand
Yes, I hope for some change as well!
I buy them second hand too due to loss of quality - never had an issue
I bought a polene bag online and liked it. I was in Paris last summer to look at a particular bag. The bag was in a customer’s hand and I waited patiently by the other display when a store assistant came by to place the bag down I asked her if I could view that bag. She totally ignored my request, place the bag down, shrugged her shoulders and walked away. I also witnessed another customer try to get a store assistant’s attention and he just rolled his eyes and muttered out some nasty stuff in French and just walked away. That brand needs work. I just left the store. You cannot pay for customer service but your items are for sale, people pay for them and you shouldn’t be rude to people. That brand needs lots of work either customer service.
I think it's a French style :D Their behaviour towards customers is awful :/
I had bought quite a number of Polene bags. Twice, I was sent the wrong bag on two separate occasions. I had to write on their instagram page as I could not get any service any other way from Australia. I had to take photos as evidence of me sending the bags back to Paris, and wait until they received them until they sent a replacement, when they should have rectified their mistake immediately. I have never ordered again as I consider it too risky.
Wow! yes, that is too risky AND time consuming. I am so sad because I was about to buy one this week. Sounds like I should have ordered when they first started. The entire point of luxury items are: quality and customer care. Sounds like Polene is not luxury anymore.
Oh lord, if this happened to u in Australia, i just cannot expecting more from New Zealand😂😂😂
I have several Polene bags and have no issues at all. Three of the bags were purchased toward the end of 2023.
That's amazing!
Against the trend.
Me too...in december 2023 I bought my Polène Numero Un Nano in chalk and arrived perfect!!! Beautiful, great quality ❤️ I'm in Brazil 🇧🇷
I bought 3 Polene bags in late 2023 and all of them arrived with no issue. Did not notice any discernible quality issues either.
It’s so sad.. I have the feeling when mid luxury brands starts doing too much ad also with influencers the quality goes down.. I saw every small local influencer that I know on insta is also promoting the brand sezane.. usually the costs for that are not cheap and customers usually pay that with a decrease in quality..
I wanted to buy a Cyme so badly until a few months ago, but after seeing all the reviews and reading about the bad customer service (in store and online) I decided to buy from brands like Coccinelle or Furla. Italian quality is still better imo.
When I discovered the brand lately I fall in love and ordered many bags over few months. I haven’t experienced any issues. Read that quality is going down over years that’s why I bought quite a few. So far so good. Happy with purchase. I haven’t wore them for long time though. The prices went up since 2024, I’m happy I bought in 2023 :)
I got my polene neuf mini at the end of 2022 and it still looks amazing, I think I got one of the last good quality batches
That's amazing
Same. I got the ten and it's amazing
I bought at the end of 2023, the quality is great though. I'm lucky i guess hahhaha
Thank u for this video. I'm in the process of ordering 2 Polene bags for myself. I was checking out some reviews and stumbled on ur video. Very eye-opening
NB. The brown bag at the 3:05 mark is NOT POLENE, but the Songmont Reset Tofu bag 😊
Wow! Thx for sharing 😊
Thanks for watching!
I bought a Numéro Un Nano online in September 2020 for 220€ and it has almost always been my everyday bag since then. I’ve taken it so many places, travelled with it and squished it inside suitcases, stuffed it full to the brim - you name it, I’ve put the bag through it. It has held up incredibly well and the bag itself still looks almost new! The only places I can notice some wear and tear is on the strap. The leather is starting to fray out in those metal loops where the bag is secured to the strap, and the edge coat has cracked a bit at the top where the bag sits on my shoulder.
I just checked and the exact same bag is 340€ now, which I suppose is a fair price in this day and age, even though a 50% increase over the course of 3 1/2 years is still quite steep. Given that, I would expect the quality now to still be as good as back then. I’m not sure how I’d view their pricing these days if the quality was lacking, to be honest. But my bag was one of the best purchases I’ve ever made, and I’ve definitely gotten my money’s worth over and over!
I got 2 bags from their Tokyo store in early Jan before the price increase (lucky me) and have been impressed with quality from the moment I checked out their bags in store until now when using mine. Customer service in Tokyo store was ok given they were so busy. I asked to check out the bags in the box before paying and the sales associate actually helped check every corner and stitching before giving me to check myself.
I think it’s really hits and miss but I’ve been lucky so far so hopefully they fix the inconsistencies problem cause their bags deserve the hype.
Japan as a country just have better customer service all around so not sure if it's reflective of Polene or just of Japanese culture
Polène bags never intrigued me, but this is still sad to see the decline of a brand that people were so excited about a few years ago. :(
oh wow! i was planning to buy the neuf.thank u for this vlog.
Yes the nuef is on my wishlist! Its gorgeous. I have 7 polene bags all bought up until 22 id say. Maybe early 23. Never any problems. I hope these are growing pains because I love their bags!
@3:05 That is not a Polene bag, it is instead from the brand Songmont. It is the Songmont Tofu bag. I'd HIGHLY recommend Songmont as a mid-range luxury brand!
I ordered the numero sept in black in September of 2022 and had an excellent experience. The bag is excellent quality and fits so much. Sounds like the issues started in 2023 though…
I bought mine for 420$ and now the exact same bag is listed for 580$. They also charge 20$ for shipping on top of both of those prices. That’s a 160$ increase in a year and a half. Which is just wild.
After hearing this I probably would only buy another if I go to New York, which there is a low chance I’ll be going there soon. Sucks :/ I love their designs.
The price jumps are pretty crazy though.
I have some Polene bags and the quality is perfect and very similar to high end brands. The prices are really good for the quality offered. I think there is also a big difference in European service and US expectations. In Europe you cannot return a product once you have used it. So small defects are seen as normal usage while in the US you can even return worn underwear if you are not happy with it.
This is so true!!
I have had 7 bags from them. Started to purchase early 2021 and the quality is beautiful and price appropriate. To be fair all of them are flawless. Although I have exchanged one 5th bag I ordered as there was a white streak somewhere only to find out it was glue. Got it exchanged for free so no harm done. Not so keen on them now unless they release new designs.
In my opinion it’s pure greed they didn’t start out of passion for creating a quality products but they wanted to make a name for themselves and then get profit off of it
Unfortunately my Polene bag got broken after half a year of use, I contacted the customer service and they provided me a label to send back the bag to let it repair. So I did this, my bag is now in Spain… I will let you know, how it goes. Since I am a minimalist it was my only bag, which I am really missing now. I hope it will come back soon 🙌.
Hi! Was it fixed?))
Same issue they sent it back without repairing it. Now waiting for them to provide an exchange
I got my numero un in Dec 2022 and the quality is impeccable. However, now, with there price increases, i wouldn’t gamble on it again. I love Cyme, but i heard so many comments it’s loosing its shape after a year. I still dream of numero neuf in chalk. But sadly, I’ll pass on both of them 😢
I got my Numero Un smooth camel Dec. 2021, the product was amazing, the craftmanship, the leather and all, I'm totally blown away. That was my Christmas wishlist and so delighted for my bag. Up to this time my bag still looks sophisticated and looks brand new every time I wear it.🥰😘
I ordered a bag and 2018 I believe and it’s still perfect but I can’t speak for their quality now I guess I’m glad I got it when I did
I was thinking of buying a polene bag for a few months, and now I decided not to. There are others mid range luxury brand that I can support.
which brand do you recommend?
@@loganj6203 We love Strathberry a fabulous UK brand and they have amazing customer service too x
@@loganj6203coach or Michael kors
@@loganj6203longchamp !
Wow interesting to hear this 😳 I have several bags that I bought myself (not gifted) each is perfect and I love them. Had them and use them often zero issues.🙃
That's great. I'm soo happy for you!
It’s much more recent.
Wow! I have my Polene bag as the princess but in white. So beautiful no issues with mine.
Thank you soooooo much for this video you have just saved me!!!! I’ve been considering purchasing a Polene bag and was surprised by the price increases being such a new company and was wondering about their quality. At these price points I’d rather shop at Coach where the quality is consistently top notch and they’ve been tried and true for many many years. I too had began to wonder why they would not want to build their brand before doubling their price so disappointing!
Absolutely! Coach is a long standing design house with actual heritage. Polene is just a trendy company from 2016. No comparison!
Glad I got two bags before they went sideways.
Was gifted my first polene numero nuerf a month ago & im lovingggg it
Just got a second back. Bought it directly in Paris. I hope it lasts. Customer service was really good in my case.
Thank god i had a good experience with the bag so far and the customer service when i thought a problem with my bag
I have been looking at them for over a year now. Had planned to visit their store on my upcoming visit to Paris. I hope that I am not disappointed.
Good Idea, bought mine there as well & Service was great. Come early, they open 11 a.m.
and if you are there at this time, there is no queue.
My last visit was last week 😊
You won’t be disappointed! The quality of their bags are amazing!!
I have two beautiful Polene bags and they are perfect! I love them both!😊
Granted it’s been at least a year since I’ve ordered from polene I have never had any issues with quality or service. I currently own 7 bags and there’s one other I’d really like to buy. I probably will order it despite these recent type of reviews. I’m now quite curious to see if I can tell a difference with quality.
The price increase is sad but I’m not entirely surprised. I hope these are growing pains with the brand that will be sorted out. Unfortunate as they are my all time favorite bag brand and I’ve just loved the quality thus far.
Coach has the advantage of learning the lesson and reinforcing the luxury tag they lost in the 2010’s also we can go to a shop and verify the product by ourselves. Poléne has become a gamble, specially with the current economy atmosphere
I got my Polene bags in 2022, so far they're all fabulous. So I don't have experience with customer service. I was rooting they could go far someday, but now it's sad that the brand is degrading in quality nowadays
I’ve never had problems with my Polene bag. I even purchased one for my daughter and hers is still nice too. We’ve had them for a year now, and my daughter uses hers daily.
I’m so glad I saw this bc I was saving for a bag.
Whooooa I didn’t realize the Dix went up so much! :/ I’m glad I got one late 2023 when they weren’t quite so high.. I ended up purchasing the Atla card holder soon after my bag, and thankfully I’ve had good experiences.
Got mine in Aug 2022 and was really good. Have been using it on such a frequent basis, and I’ve been very tempted to get another from them. but yes the price hike and overhyped by influencers is turning me off. Personally I don’t have an Instagram but i hate it when people purchase things becos “it’s getting popular, it’s the IN thing”. I tend to do a lot of research and comparison on bags, watches, furniture pieces, skincare which I see as investment. Each of my bags last for more than 6 years. Sad to see this happening to one of my favourite companies.
Concerning price increases, inflation after Covid is VERY real. It is costing them a heck of a lot more to produce these bags post covid. Additionally bc their customer base is increasing I imagine they also need to scale up their customer service reps etc. you’ll see the same scale of price increases if not more across a myriad of other handbag companies.
I’ve purchased two bags and have had zero issues. One I wanted to return because I just decided to the style wasn’t for me and polene’s customer service was great.
I got one recently from their official online store in Tao bao China and I love it!
I really wanted a Dix as my first bag, but hearing about all of the issues on YT/Reddit along with the drastic price increases sadly has turned me away. Hoping one day I can find a similar dupe.
I have a polene bag that I absolutely love and don’t regret buying 😍
The soho boutique is amazing and I love my new bag
Customer service is a BIG deal. Mistakes happen, but how a company handles them makes all the difference!
exactly!
Got 2 bags from Polene, no quality issues. Would buy from them again.
That's great!
Scrutinise very carefully before purchasing. They have many consumer protection cases open. The stitching debacle alone is just ridiculous.
coach bags has my ❤
Oh no! I have a numero un and LOVE IT SO BAD. Was looking forward to buy more
I received my cyme bag in the mail but was not happy when I saw the very LONG noticeable indent across the front of the bag. Reached out to customer service and all they said was that leather naturally scuffs and has marks but this was a brand "new" bag. Unfortunately I decided to keep the bag as I had to pay for shipping to return the bag AND repay shipping if I wanted a new bag but also risk receiving another faulty bag. POOR quality and TERRIBLE customer service.
I bought a numero dix a couple years ago with no issues ago but now, I’m apprehensive to make another purchase 😬
I would keep an eye on the brand, not condemning it as I do love their designs, but I wouldn't purchase any as of now.. until they get their shit together and learn from this. it's unfortunate when companies compromise quality with quantity, and YET STILL INCREASE THEIR PRICES. :(
ニーズが高まるなら価格が高まるのも当然のことです。
サービスと品質が整うならば、ブランド価値も高まって行くでしょう。
私は先日ポレーヌのバックを手に入れましたが、惚れ惚れする美しさでした。
一気に話題に上る商品は需給バランスを崩します。私はこのバックを大切に愛したいと思っているので、ポレーヌの未来が明るいといいのですが。
That’s too bad. I bought mine when they first came out and I love it. Been thinking of getting more, but I’m going to pass.
I changed my mind about an order and they replied within four days. A couple weeks later I ordered a mini cyme (change my mind a lot). It came yesterday. It in taupe omg beautiful. Box is ugly but who cares. The bag is gorgeous!!!!
Even living in Paris, they can’t tell when they will have which bag on stock. I bought my first and only polene bag a year ago, and I had to order it online and pay for delivery when the shop is like 10 km away from me…
I’ve always thought that Polene was sooooo dulllllll 😂
nooo, the designs are incredible!
I agree. Shadow of Celine.
I love my bag. They just need to hire more admin/coordinators people to organise the distribution and customer service side of thing’s. Literally 3 more people they’d be golden.
Yeap. Customer service needs more help
They’ve lost connection to quality manufacture. More “Middle people” won’t help that. They can’t even stitch straight! Quality + mass demand products = literally impossible
I never bought anything online, I bought two bags in the New York store it was nice because they let you inspect them in the stores before the wrap it up, the only downfall is they have limited supplies in store so you may not get the colors that you want going in store
Purchased a Dix in 2023 the gold stamped logo is faint and appears to be poorly stamped. Otherwise leather and finish is good. Price paid €320
I have the same problem with my Tonca. I’ve heard some people from Reddit having the same problem. I think this shows that the quality really degraded recently. 😭
I have cyme mini and numero neuf mini. I have no issue and problem at all from how I purchased to wear and tear. For honest review I loved cyme better because numero mini pretty hard to put in and out of stuff
Of course I find this the day after ordering my first bag
I've had 3 polene bags: Neuf Pebble Camel Leather, Cyme in Textured Cognac Leather, and Un Nano Black Smooth Leather. None of their leather felt luxurious, I found coach and tory burch bags to be better quality but then again I am comparing between their higher end bags (Rogues, Originals/Archival Bags, Tabby, Lee Radziwill, Eleanor, Runway bags). Polene looks nice but the materials feels cheap, the leather is painted and you don't get the leather experience. In terms of construction, you can feel the stiffeners in the bag which you can lift e.g. the neuf bag on the base. Contemporary mall brands like coach don't have this issue, they have cheap construction in terms of design (their material and stitching is ok).
I used to like polene and want to purchase tonca / sept model..
But I keep seeing people reselling their new polene bags in market place in my country. So I think the bags itself can’t meet people expectation for daily use
the problem was the hype IMO. They got too popular too quickly and in order to deliver the quantity, they had to lower the quality.
i just bought 2 bags from polene and i think their quality is superb. this might be a one-off though.
It’s not a one off! I’ve had the same experience and everyone I know has too. Even with the price increases the quality for the price is still amazing.
Customer service people been complaining about polene are so true. They do not have a customer service so far I bought two bags from them and both of my bags looks pretty good. But I’ve noticed compared to even a year ago price spiked, almost double. So unjustifiable. I have noticed they’ve been sending bags to influencers all over the world and somebody has to pay for that bags and that’s simply consumers. I wish they stayed a small and paying more attention to quality control instead just make money and get rich quick. This type of practice shows what company stands for. I am not sure I’m really into the game they are playing
I bought Numero Dix last November 2023 used for only 7 days and the strap broke. No return or exchange within 30 days policy, not recommended.
that's really sad...
Of course that’s illegal. They must comply with the law regardless of where you live.
I was at Polene Paris.. waited patiently outside.. and when I was in.. and asked for the bag I was looking for they said it was oos! But I just saw them hold it.. the sale assistance were soo rude & bad service I’d say.. and now I am not comibg back
I have Polene bag and I love it good quality
Got mine before they were popular ❤
I really love their desgin, but now I'm scared to order online. 😂 Price is not a issue if the high quality can be guaranteed. Looks like it's not the case now.
I have gotten a Beri a few years back and so far I’m very happy with it, but yea, one time I reached out for CS it was a complete wash
Saved me from buying one 😅. I almost bought one ☝🏽 thank you 🙏🏽
Yep, I’m not buying again. I was just on their website to buy a bag. I will go for with Kate spade or coach. If something happens with my order I need customer service I can count on
I wanted one so badly and I was trying to decide on the style I wanted. Given the price increase , I will more than likely buy a used one . So sad 😢
The bags have all been on back order, I wonder if that means the quality will become better
Oh man! I was planning to buy one soon but if the quality is hit or miss AND they have poor customer service then I will need to pass. Sad because I really love the design.
I should have bought the black one when I had the chance 😢
Got a polene bag recently, it has defects. And it came with no tag. Is this for real or im just super unluckyv 😢
Pilene is very popular in Japan , I have heard!! 😜
It’s annoying, influencers get these bags for free and sing their praises making them super popular. Then a couple months later they do a bag collection video and surprise, surprise these bags are no longer in their collection.
Hi! I did like your first video, but this one… Such a dramatic name to catch attention, but you basically repeated the content of the first video. Nice that you’ve got an email from Polene though, I still trust the brand and what they wrote makes sense 💛 But seeing what people share avout their experience in the recent year I agree that Polene need to improve parts of their production and cx now
This is going the Chanel direction in a fraction of a second! So it may be that if we want a Polene bag, we'd better buy it pre-loved.
This makes me so sad! There are two bags that I really want to buy from them but after watching this and reading the comments I will keep my money. Really sad that they don´t care about their customers who are the once giving them a lot of money...
I went to the Paris boutique. Luckily I decided to see in person before I buy.. The quality is atrocious, feels so cheap for the price.
Oh! Thanks for sharing your first-hand experience!
@@perspectiveofme happy to share! I went with confidence and planned to get 2-3 bags! Left in disappointment
The new prices, and more of the textured leather... and the lack of colors has kept me away. When the bags were cheaper I bought many, now, I wouldn't try again. The brand got popular because of quality and price. If that goes, so will the customers.
That's too bad, I was looking for a #10 as my next bag purchase...
and I've seen counterfeit polene ALREADY. that's how popular they are...
Yes! I've seen them as well
It's not only online that you face poor customer service. In their flagship store in Paris when you look at the bag their salespeople just casually grab the bag you are holding from your hands never saying a word and bring it to the customer they are assisting. After standing in line for over an hour to just enter the store you constantly get the bag ripped out of your hands without really the opportunity to look at it. What is the point of even going to the physical location if you still can't inspect the bag in person?
3:06 is the Songmont Reset Tofu bag, not a Polene.
Actually, as their quantities have increased they are able to negotiate a better pricing. So I don’t really get the price increase other than wanting to remarket themselves as a less accessible and more exclusive brand.
If you want to have a quick taste of French customer service, try letting Air France misplace your check in luggage