– For all the major luxury brands based in Paris, the French capital has so far lacked an auction house specializing in fashion.
She believes it’s important to put a modern spin on vintage clothes. Having strong imagery also helps to sell lots to overseas buyers, who are not interested in reading reams of description. “I don’t want this auction house to be too elitist,” said Blanckaert, though she also helped private auction platform Fair Warning sell a Paco Rabanne dress for $100,000. “There’s nothing to say we can’t work with that caliber of pieces.”It’s a competitive market, with the proliferation of secondhand platforms online, and a lack of transparency on pricing. Penelope’s takes a 20 percent commission on sales, and items are priced competitively to encourage bidding.