In the age of rising prices for just about everything, many online brands are offering cheaper alternatives. Quince is one of the biggest leaders that offers regular prices being more competitive than competitors’ sale prices. Many of their items look like exact duplicates to bigger brands, especially when it comes to dresses. Out of curiosity, we bought a dress from Reformation that Quince has the exact duplicate of. Let’s look to see how they compare.
Fabric
The dress we bought is called the Everett Linen Dress (Retail $298) from Reformation and Quince calls theirs the 100% European Linen Ladder Stitch Midi Dress (Retail $90). We also bought the Balia Linen Dress, which is the 100% European Linen Corset Midi Dress in the Quince version. For this post, we will stick with the Everett dress. Right off the bat, the color difference is noticeable. The Reformation is off-white, while Quince is a true bright white.
While both of these are 100% linen, the Reformation fabric immediately feels heavier and more substantial. Not all linen is made equal; where it is sourced, how the fabric is woven, and the GSM (grams per square meter) all make a difference. In photos or from far away, it may not look different, but you can tell the difference when you’re up close and holding the fabrics in your hand.
Quality
When it comes to quality, we look at things like stitching, zippers, buttons, and overall construction of the design. Just looking at these two dresses, you can see a difference. In fact, one of the buttons for the Quince dress came off as soon as we tried it on. At least a button is relatively easy to sew back on! Typically, Reformation will also use a more robust metal zipper, as they did in the Balia dress.
For this dress, though, they used a YKK brand concealed zipper, which is a great quality zipper brand that usually distinguishes a garment as high-quality-made. You will rarely find a YKK zipper used for cheap dupes sold on Amazon. The good news is Quince also uses a YKK zipper for their dress.
The trim for the ladder stitch design that Reformation uses looks stronger and better made. It is a small detail most people may not really care for, but it is worth mentioning. The handmanship for stitching in a straight line looks cleaner with Reformation. Reformation’s overall finishes look cleaner.
Keep in mind, we’re only comparing the quality for 100% linen between Reformation and Quince. Both brands have many other fabric options such as silk, viscose, cotton, cashmere, etcetera. While Reformation does have really good quality linen and cashmere, that is about the only items we buy from them anymore. We strongly refrain from ever buying their viscose material unless it is steeply discounted. Their viscose is quite delicate and prone to shrinking with washing unless you make the effort to steam the size back out. But that’s another subject for another post.
Fit
For this dress, Reformation has numerical sizes, while Quince comes in letter sizing. We bought the Reformation dress in a size 2P and the Quince in an XS, so it is not a direct comparison. However, we find that Quince generally runs large for us. Even the XS can sometimes feel a size bigger in many other items. With this dress, Reformation’s 2P fits a lot more flattering because it is our true size versus Quince’s XS.
However, keep in mind that Reformation sizing can also be very inconsistent. Some items will run small, some just right, and some large. For this particular dress, it ran just a tad right at the waist. As far as length, we find that Reformation is extremely unfriendly towards true petites. Even at the petite sizing, the 2P from Reformation is virtually the same length as the Quince version of this dress.
Customer Service
We have been buying from Reformation for almost the past decade and have done a full review of our experience with the brand. Due to a terrible customer service experience in 2022, we usually refrain ordering directly from the company again. We were only able to talk to a rep through text message, and the exchanges left much to be desired. It felt unprofessional and frustrating to go back and forth. Instead, we buy the brand from Nordstrom, Shopbop, Bloomingsdale or other retailers with a much better customer service.
Our experience with Quince has been the opposite. Their customer service is extremely professional and efficient. We had bought one of their washable silk skirts in the past, where one of the colors didn’t hold up. Their rep was very quick to respond with a favorable solution where we were able to donate the skirt, and she gave a store credit right away.
So who is better: Quince or Reformation?
The question of who is better or which brand is worth it is really dependent on what you value. But for us, Quince is a much better value overall. This post only compares the linen dresses, which are only one type of offering that both brands carry.
Reformation’s quality is better overall when it comes to minor details such as stitching, zippers, and the fabric itself. Up close, it is better made and looks more expensive because it is. But is it worth almost three times the price? Reformation does have two sales a year, and at that time, you can score up to 70% off. If you can score the same dress for 70% or even 50% off, Reformation’s version is much better for this particular dress.
However, while we would only buy a few items from Reformation for its special details, Quince is just so much better value for the money when it comes to everything else. Especially when you’re comparing regular pricing. They have better everyday prices, better customer service, and overall better selections of other fabrics that are not hard to deal with.
NOTE:
We are not affiliated with either brands mentioned in any way and we bought both items with our own money out of a love for fashion. We do not have any affiliate links either, this is only for informational purposes.