There are only a few neighbourhoods in London I actually like to shop; the old fashioned way. Make a day of it, lunch, lots of browsing and then deciding at the end what you are having. That’s how we do it anyway. The easiest I find for parking; not mad about the tube are either Chelsea around Sloane Square or St John’s Wood. I like the mix of small shops and shopping on a high street adds something you don’t get in a department store.
Zadig and Voltaire have a big concession in Selfridges although the staff aren’t as friendly or as knowledgeable and I like the whole experience in the Zadig and Voltaire shop on St John’s Wood High Street.
The brand certainly feels more established than its relatively short 28 year history, founded in Paris in 1997. The collections became well known in the noughties for pushing boundaries combining romantic ballerina skirts with grunge and leather. They pushed colour, prints, skulls even in a similar but more subtle way to French fashion designer Christian Audigier Ed Hardy or Phillipe Plein except with an added dose on the side of that chic you only feel in France especially Paris.
Zadig has always felt rebellious to me why I became a customer at launch and why I still feel almost thirty years later Zadig and Voltaire will have something lovely, fun, original and luxury for me when I am in the mood for a shop. Or even in search of a specific shape or piece.
As other shops and brands have lost my interest I am still excited to pop in this particular Zadig and Voltaire store at least once a month.
I think this is why this brand particularly has endured so well. It doesn’t exclude based on age or size or gender. It feels so Jean Paul Gaultier to me only more affordable.
It’s a brand that challenges, asks questions, if you’re brave enough you’re in and I LOVE that.
Whenever I go into this store particularly I am always treated so very warmly and it doesn’t seem to matter if I make a purchase or not.
I will say like for so many fashion brands the quality of fabrics seems to have deteriorated (not massively) and the prices have exploded so I am always excited to see a piece secondhand.
Currently in St John’s Hospice shop three or four doors down there is the most exquisite vintage Zadig and Voltaire jacket, military, size 8 for £60.
The charity shop has a strict window policy. The window is rotated on a Thursday so this current window display will be available to buy on Thursday 13th March, 2025 when the charity shop
Opens at 10am.
If you’re a window shopper like me get down there.