In continuation with the “save the best for last” theme, today I give you a glimpse into Pons Quintana‘s current Vente Privée offering.
What is Vente Privée? French for “private sale”, it’s an e-commerce company (from France) that pioneered the idea of designer “flash” sale. The sense of urgency ( a “flash” sale only lasts a few days) and the veneer of exclusivity (the invitations are extended to a network of subscribers, through word-of-mouth and by the participating companies themselves) give the brands an opportunity to sell their last season’s inventory fast, at huge discounts (50 to 70%), but without cheapening the brand’s image. It’s a clever balancing act and a potential win-win for both sides. The American equivalents are Gilt and Amazon’s My Habit.
Pons Quintana sent me an invite, which was good, because I wouldn’t have thought about it otherwise. Besides, it feels nice to be invited. This is exactly how the concept behind Vente Privée is supposed to work.
Of course, it’s the Spanish version of Vente Privée, only selling inside Spain. This caused some “weeping and gnashing of teeth” on my part, but I decided to put my energy to good use and to do a post about it instead.
Pons Quintana operates along traditional industry lines, that is it sells the widest selection of its shoes in its own stores in the Balearic islands and inland Spain. That’s where my friend Marina was blown off her feet by the sensory overload of so many beautifully-colored Pons Quintana shoes in one place. (see post here).
Their online shop only features “skeleton” collections – the most iconic pieces, but with little variation. Yoox, my go-to online designer brand retailer, gets a few pieces here and there – not really representative of what Pons Quintana has to offer.
The few shops that carry the brand here in Canada buy a couple or so models per season and by no means the most spectacular ones. None of the above carry the handbags.
So, this Vente Privée sale is one of the rare opportunities to see Pons Quintana‘s premium shoe and hand-bag collection outside of Spain. Of course, these are only the left-overs, but it’s not hard to imagine what the full in-store collection must have been like. While this is window-shopping for us in North America right now, I do hope that at some point in the not too distant future more Pons Quintana shoes will start making their way over the pond. Not to mention that any of them would make great vacation shopping. All the more reason for travelling!
The thing that I absolutely love about Pons Quintana shoes is their stunning and incredibly nuanced color palette. I love color in shoes. Add to it the trade mark Pons Quintana “trenzado” or “woven” texture and the result is fabulous.
The models in this post were chosen chiefly for their color. The shoes are mostly of the “woven” kind. The bags are smooth leather.
Enjoy!
Sea blue and green woven pumps.
Lilac and pale rose woven low-wedge sandals
Handbag in rose.
Dark-green, green, and forest green woven sandals. Four greens so far, not bad, eh?
Orange and yellow that are good enough to eat!
This vibrant turquoise takes my breath away.
Delicate coral, deep (but not too deep) cherry red.
Woven sandal in shimmering moon-light silver.
Camel and red handbags.
