Totême vs Khaite: which minimalist house is for you
Totême vs Khaite: which minimalist house is for you
Khaite, founded in New York in 2016 by Catherine Holstein, and Totême, founded in New York in 2014 and based in Stockholm, are the two founder-led houses most often cross-shopped for a minimal wardrobe with a fashion edge. Khaite’s median on Luxury Handbags is $2,795 against $980 for Totême. The differences are in temperature, denim and price.
Key facts
- Totême on Luxury Shoes : 1,518 pieces, median $980; Khaite: 679 pieces, median $2,795 (sample of the newest 100)
- Both are founder-led, both trade on restraint, and both are stocked on Luxury Handbags with authentication and worldwide shipping
- The price gap is the headline: Totême sits at roughly a third of The Row and Khaite at the median
- Sizes: Totême sells in EU and letters ( Luxury Handbags shows UK); see the size guide
Price
Khaite sits around three times the Totême median on Luxury Shoes . Its cashmere, its leather and its denim are priced as luxury; Totême prices the same categories as premium. A Khaite cashmere cardigan and a Totême cashmere crew are both very good; one costs a thousand dollars more.
Design
Khaite is polished New York glamour: body-aware, a little dangerous, strong on eveningwear and on the cashmere that made its name. Totême is cooler and more Scandinavian: straighter lines, more tailoring, more outerwear, a monochrome palette with one accent. Khaite dresses for the evening as well as the day; Totême dresses for the working week first.
Denim
Both houses are known for denim. Khaite’s is the fashion cut, high, wide and priced like tailoring. Totême’s Original and classic cut denim is rigid organic cotton sold by waist inch at a fraction of the price, and it is the better everyday jean.
Fit
Khaite is cut for shape and sizes in US numbers; Totême is cut straight and long, sizes in EU and letters and states true to size. Khaite runs closer through the body, Totême roomier.
Who buys which
Khaite for the woman whose wardrobe needs an evening and a statement knit; Totême for the woman building a system of coats, tailoring and bags. Both hubs are on Luxury Handbags with the same authentication and shipping.
The Totême pieces that make the case
1. Scoop neck rib tank black, $164
An earlier-season piece, still in stock, shown in black.
2. Curved rib tank in Black, $260
Made from 93% organic cotton, 7% elastane, shown in black.
3. Classic rib tank in White, $280
Made from 93% organic cotton, 7% elastane, shown in white.
4. Compact jersey top in Black, $410
Made from 81% viscose, 15% polyamide, 4% elastane, shown in black.
5. Compact knit capri trousers in Black, $570
Made from 53% viscose, 45% recycled polyamide, 2% elastane, shown in black.
6. Crinkled knit tank in Black, $570
Made from 75% viscose, 25% polyester, shown in black.
“I love working with shades, exploring how a saturated black creates an impact together with a washed cotton, or putting a crisp fresh white next to something ivory,” Elin Kling told The Telegraph’s Lisa Armstrong in February 2025.
Frequently asked questions
Is Totême like Khaite?
They share restraint and a neutral palette. Khaite is warmer, more body-aware and stronger in evening; Totême is cooler, straighter and stronger in outerwear and tailoring, at a third of the price.
Is Totême cheaper than Khaite?
Yes. Luxury Handbags medians: $980 for Totême, $2,795 for Khaite.
Which has better denim?
Khaite for a fashion cut, Totême for an everyday rigid jean at a lower price.
Which has better knitwear?
Khaite’s cashmere is the reference and priced as such. Totême’s cashmere and merino are very good value.
Do they size the same?
No. Khaite sizes in US numbers and runs close; Totême sizes in EU and letters and runs true, with oversized coats flagged.
Which should I buy first?
Totême if the gap in your wardrobe is a coat, trousers and a bag; Khaite if it is a dress and a statement knit.
Read next
Brands like Totême Price guide Our Totême review Is Totême a luxury brand?
More Totême guides
Every Totême page by Luxury Shoes ’s fashion editor Gemma Deeks: Is it a luxury brand?, How to style, Brands like Totême, The edit, Who is Totême?, History timeline, Size guide, Shoe size guide, Price guide, Where to buy, Sale, Review, Real vs fake, Materials and care, Glossary, Who wears it, vs The Row, Capsule wardrobe, The Signatures, Fall winter 2026, Spring summer 2026, Coats, Scarf jackets and coats, Jackets and blazers, Shearling, Knitwear, Dresses, Trousers, Jeans and denim, Skirts, Tops and shirts, Swim and beachwear, Leather, Bag guide, T-Lock bags, Belted tote, Shoe guide, Boots, Flip flops, Sneakers, Jewellery guide, Sunglasses, Scarves, Black, Camel, beige and brown, White and ivory.
Sources and method
Checked on 18 September 2026 by Gemma Deeks, fashion editor at Luxury Shoes . Product facts, the compositions, care lines, dimensions, heel heights and country of manufacture, are the brand’s own product-page text; counts, prices and price ranges are Luxury Shoes ’s live catalogue on that date and move with stock; the founders’ biography and the house history come from the brand’s own pages and the press articles listed below, each read on the date above; the size scales are the brand’s own. Where a claim could not be checked against one of these it was left out, and where the fitting room is giving its own advice the page says so.
- toteme.com, About: the house’s own description of itself, its founders and the atelier in Stockholm
- toteme.com, Sustainability: the Signatures, the design principles, the Milkywire partnership and the 2024/25 report
- toteme.com, FAQ: shipping countries, duties, payment and returns on the brand’s own store
- toteme.com, Stores: the flagship list by country
- Totême product pages: the description, composition, care, size-guide and country-of-manufacture lines of every style (1,297 pages saved between June and September 2026)
- Elin Kling on Wikipedia
- Karl Lindman on Wikipedia
- Wikidata Q4959117
- WWD, With New Investment, Totême Shoots for the Stars (2021): the Altor minority investment, growth and margin figures and the founders’ quotes
- The Telegraph, Lisa Armstrong, 24 February 2025 (via Yahoo Life): revenue, headcount, the Paris show and Elin Kling’s quotes
- Vogue Scandinavia: Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden’s favourite Nordic brands
- The Business of Fashion, BoF 500: Elin Kling and Karl Lindman
- Luxury Handbags live catalogue, 18 September 2026: prices, sizes and stock
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