Atoire, a fashion startup, has raised $9.5 million in seed funding to sell luxury-quality clothing and handbags directly to consumers at substantially lower prices. It says its products use the same materials, craftsmanship and factories as established luxury brands, aiming to benefit from consumer frustration over steep luxury price rises and growing interest in affordable alternatives. The company argues that its model offers a slower, better-made alternative to fast fashion while avoiding traditional luxury mark-ups.

The round included a16z Speedrun, Night Capital and Lightspeed Ventures’ Jeremy Liew. Co-founder Redouane Ramdani says factories increasingly develop their own designs and can produce smaller batches, reducing their dependence on major brands and limiting excess stock; Atoire uses AI to assess trends, forecast demand, test product colours and anticipate material shortages. An Italian leather handbag on the site costs a few hundred dollars, compared with thousands for comparable items from brands such as Prada or Louis Vuitton.