A look from Études Studio.
PARIS — After relaunching as a design duo in June, Paris-based brand Études Studio is revamping its executive team with two key hires.
Marie Amalou joins as the brand’s first digital director, bringing nearly two decades of experience from A.P.C. She will lead a full website redesign and implement a digital-first approach that includes online-only exclusives.
Sébastien Mandel, a finance veteran with experience at Dior and Hermès, joins as administrative and financial director, supporting a roadmap that targets fivefold revenue growth by 2030.
Central to this next chapter is increased financial backing from telecoms investor Antoine Levavasseur, alongside continued support from Céline Lippi, cofounder of early-stage investing fund Fashion Capital Partners and VC firm Luxury Tech Fund.
“We’re very happy with this evolution in the structure of the company,” cofounder Aurélien Arbet told WWD in an interview.
The hires follow the departure of founding partner José Lamali earlier this year. The new leadership team includes Arbet and Jérémie Egry as artistic directors, Amalou overseeing digital, Mandel in finance and Marc Bothorel in the director of operations role. The company is also seeking a wholesale and retail director and is open to hiring a chief executive officer in the future.
“It felt time to bring in new people that have a track record of succeeding… who come with experience and new ideas,” Arbet said. “Everything we can do now feels like we have stronger pillars.”
At the center of this transformation is a more defined digital strategy. Wholesale currently accounts for 65 percent of revenue, but Études aims to rebalance this to 45 percent wholesale, 45 percent DTC (e-commerce and retail), and 10 percent from its creative studio services, such as its work for French brand Aigle.
Études’ retail presence includes a flagship in Paris’ Marais district and a corner at Galeries Lafayette. While wholesale has remained steady, Arbet said the difficulty now is “to bring in new [retailers],” whereas the brand sees greater potential growth on the DTC side, particularly online.
That shift to digital is also a reaction to the current fashion climate. “The business of fashion now is very impacted by many things,” said Egry. “We need to improve our digital [presence] and to build a digital team… we need to play with the new tools to make the sales grow. We cannot just be based on our organic traffic.”
Amalou will lead the overhaul — from the user experience of the site to consumer engagement across platforms. Arbet said the brand has “always had e-commerce” but lacked dedicated leadership in the space. Now, the goal is to build structure and scale.
“It’s about how we talk directly to the final consumer,” Arbet added. “Historically, the brand was strong through wholesale. Now, digital should take a larger part in revenue.”
Elsewhere, Mandel’s role is to reinforce the brand’s financial structure and support growth planning. “His knowledge is very helpful to anticipate future projects,” Arbet said.
International expansion is also part of those plans. Europe and Asia remain Études’ strongest markets, with Japan, South Korea, China and Taiwan as key territories. The brand is seeing growing interest from Southeast Asia, including Vietnam and the Philippines, and is actively exploring wholesale in the Middle East.
“It’s really step by step,” said Arbet. “We don’t want to go into all the countries at the same time. But we are seeing a lot of requests we didn’t have in the past.”
The U.S. is a longer-term goal. The brand had a strong presence in New York from 2012 to 2018, but pulled back after closing its studio, which was followed by the pandemic slowdown. While Études continues to ship to U.S. customers online despite the new tariffs of 15 percent on EU goods, Arbet said re-entry into wholesale and retail would require new partnerships. “The U.S. needs to be reworked entirely,” he said. “Right now, it’s not the top priority, but it’s definitely part of step two.”
Alongside digital and geographic expansion, Études is growing its product offering — starting with bags for fall 2026, which will debut on the runway in January. While bags will be developed in-house, eyewear and footwear are on the roadmap, likely through collaborations with category-specific partners.
The launch of new product categories ties directly into the brand’s digital and DTC ambitions. “There is also a strong work on the offer,” said Arbet, noting that the broader assortment will help grow direct sales and elevate brand visibility.
Études Studio runway show in June.
Beyond its fashion collections, Études continues to operate as a creative studio. In addition to long-standing creative direction at Aigle, the brand is open to further collaborations and partnerships in adjacent categories and indicates early discussions are underway.
“The plan is really 360,” said Arbet. “Growing distribution, growing the offer, and affirming Études Studio as not just a brand, but a creative force.”
The next milestone comes in January, when Études returns to the runway during men’s fashion week. Though still in development, Arbet said the support from the expanded team is sparking new ideas.
“We have always been active on both the creative side and on the business side. That’s what makes Études a very strong line since the beginning,” he said. “But it’s quite exciting when… you can bring new people and new projects inside the brand.”