Slowing Down Fashion: A Case Study
Fashion is abuzz with conversations about reducing waste, minimizing carbon footprints, and overall sustainability. After a stretch of fast fashion apologizing and launching marketing campaigns designed to make brands feel more sustainable (i.e. greenwashing), the luxury market is finally being called to the carpet.
Brands, particularly small ones, constantly struggle with unpredictable markets. Fashion is an industry, after all, and companies need to project production in order to meet customer demand and maximize their potential profits. It is a delicate dance to reduce waste AND stay in the black. Additionally, the current culture is being fueled by social media trends that emphasize immediate gratification and gratuitous fashion “hauls.” When items are sold at ridiculously low prices by Amazon and Shein, they are inherently marketed as disposable. To that end, fast fashion generates 92 million tons of waste every year, and these hauls greatly contribute to this mindset and behavior.
In the current zeitgeist, it can be difficult to train a client to patiently wait for a garment to be made to order. Enter the Stylist.
In addition to receiving a bespoke experience tailored to your needs, preferences, and lifestyle, a stylist just might be the key to lowering your carbon footprint. Your stylist is there to help you utilize existing pieces and strategize shopping to make considerate choices. A complete overhaul of a wardrobe is almost never necessary. Rather than filling every storage option to the brim, a good stylist will provide garment and accessory solutions that promote visibility and longevity. Once a stylist takes stock of what you currently own, they can begin the pre-order process to help you see the value in waiting for the “right” things.
Let’s break down a perfect example of fashion synergy: Michelle Obama’s Monse look at the DNC. Laura Kim, the creative director for Monse, got a text from Obama’s stylist, Meredith Koop, months before the event. (Obama has been loyal to Koop since 2010.) According to Vanity Fair, Kim got off the ferry at Fire Island only to receive the message, “Did you read my email? There’s an event coming up.” What happened next was a beautiful ballet between stylist, designer, and client.
“Obama wore cropped tuxedo pants and a tailored, belted vest with criss-cross styling in the front, paired with a long black braid in her hair, Jimmy Choo heels, and David Yurman jewelry. Obama’s look, more than just visually gorgeous, was a fashionable representation of Harris’s persona and campaign.” All the elements of a traditional gentleman’s tuxedo were there… but thoughtfully reworked. “Deconstructed and re-seamed, a traditional suit jacket becomes an architectural sleeveless vest top; the tuxedo pants were slimmed and cropped. The same elements tweaked to an entirely different end result.” Unsurprisingly, the subsequent demand for this look was palpable. Bergdorf Goodman recently added the suiting to their 2024 Resort Collection and Monse is offering non-refundable preorders on the look. Not every brand or moment can create such solid buzz, but here they are locking in orders to dictate a reasonable production ”risk”. Genius.
And there you have it - the power of a good stylist and their relationships with clients and designers. Fashion magic.
