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Field Notes

• About a year ago these journals from French boutique Louise Carmen started popping up on social media for me. Tourists were making special trips to the small boutique to customize their own journal with charms and colored leather folios. Over the next few weeks the brand will be popping up with Sézane in Nolita (Oct. 12-13), Brooklyn (Oct. 16-17), and Austin (Oct. 20-21). I can’t speak to these journals, but I do have something similar that I use from Paper Republic which I absolutely love. It allows me to have multiple different notebooks to juggle everything all in one place and it is easy to replace notebooks as needed.

• Rixo, a brand that was really well known for their dresses, has been expanding into outerwear and other apparel categories. The Rixo outerwear styles have grown 30 percent versus last year showcasing how much they are focused on the opportunity here. I highlighted this earlier in September.

  I had the opportunity to speak with the brand recently and learned that the outerwear category has increased 576 percent in sales year-over-year for September. Styles like the black and white embroidered jacket with faux fur and the wool jacket with frog closures and fringe have been shared frequently by creators via ShopMy.

• I wish when I was in college more brands came to campus like what the “kids these days” are experiencing. Especially since online shopping wasn’t the thing it is now. This week I noticed ERLY, a derm founded skincare brand focused on a younger demographic, is partnering with Ulta Beauty for campus tours around Texas universities.

• I’ll keep researching, but the Ganni x Lululemon collab at least feels fresh. I like that a fashion brand is partnering up with Lululemon and the designs offer something different by using Ganni’s signature animal print. Plus Jennifer Beals dancing!!

Easiest Way To Pack

Sorry for the fake out, but the easiest way to pack is actually when it is only for one night. Otherwise I do some sort of Tetris gymnastics to get all my clothings, toiletries, shoes, and other miscellaneous stuff into my suitcase for a week away. Carry-on only! I’m too impatient to wait for baggage claim. For my quick 24 hours in NYC this week here is what worked well:

• I usually prefer this suitcase* for my carry-on. I like the soft sided Away because it expands and can keep it open on a luggage rack. But, for this trip I took the opportunity to use my small Away carry-on. Wow! What a dream a tiny suitcase is.

• Plane Departure Outfit: I wore these easiest of easy pants, a white t-shirt, black sweater, New Balance sneakers and ridiculous looking compression socks**. I was able to carry just my every day work handbag (this purchase was inspired by OG post on the Hermès Victoria) with the mini Attersee bag tucked inside for when I just need a small handbag to run out. I brought my leather jacket* too — this is my third season with this one. I love the deep pockets, especially for travel days.

• Ad Week Panel Outfit: For this panel I wore my go-to High Sport pants (at this point my CPW1 is probably negative dollars), a silk button-up* from The Park, and my Trap Pumps (sadly my Fire shade is no longer available).

  

• Quick change for the plane: For post panel meal, window shop Channel Checks, and the flight home I switched into ballet flats, another white t-shirt, and a High Sport cotton sweater.

• Other items I packed, my PJs, and I didn’t trick myself into thinking I would exercise because the trip was so short I knew I wouldn’t! I did my hair before I left with the L’ange heat styler* and used this Gloss Spray* and so I didn’t need to bring anything else with me. This iron has been great for my hair. The smoothest touch and no frizz. My toiletry bag stays packed and I just throw in my make-up. This time I used the new Westman Atelier foundation*, Ilia sensitive eyeliner*, Merit Mascara, my favorite Westman Atelier blush, and this Violette_fr lipstick.

So there you go, the trick to packing well is stick to one night. Packing content and Airplane Style is my absolute favorite genre, so hope you enjoy this peek into how I business travel too.

Weekend Shoppies

• I love my Savette clutch and this new splashy blue shade is gorgeous.

• Forecasting sock-shoes: Do we classify these as shoes or boots? Shoes with attached socks could be a new category: see these from Chloé, Magda Butrym, and these Repetto ballet slippers. The nice benefit is you get the warmth of the socks without the extra bulk. The most sock shoe there is, this one from Brave Pudding. I first clocked this sock on the TWP Fall 2025 runway showing that TWP might be a few steps ahead.

• It has not felt cool enough temp wise to consider a scarf, especially a true winter bundle-up scarf, but I like this color. Not sure if people are over these scarves yet, but the similar Vally style was a big thing in 2024 (NYTimes article by Misty White Sidell gift link) I still like this style.

• Another great scarf, I won’t stop pointing out how I think Johnstons of Elgin will be really strong this holiday season. I’ve added this one to my own wishlist. I love the classic grey plaid.

• J.Crew’s Friends & Family sale is happening now. Stock up on cashmere? Other items to buy in multiples: kids pjs, beaded necklaces, pendants — mirror, comb (reminds me of this from The Row Pre Fall 2023), and a whistle. And if you didn’t get a triangle scarf last winter you might as well grab an oversized one now.

• Dries Van Noten sneakers in hair calf in a very fun primary shade — cobalt blue.

• On the more classic side of the spectrum, a quarter zip in wool and cashmere camel.

• But the favorite quarter zip might be this red one. You have to check out all of Auralee at NAP. It looks great!!

• Summer Fridays launched their holiday treat — an impressive vanity vault with 18 “flavors” for $315 (would be $477 bought a la carte).

• For the Rhode (and Hailey Bieber) obsessed, the on-the-go set has all the essentials and with the new carrying case, is a solid advertisement for the brand. It is also useful as a wallet to carry credit cards.

What did you buy this week?

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Studs Knows Noses

When Studs first opened I was obsessed — what a brilliant idea! I live in an area where the go-to spot for getting ears pierced at the time was a tattoo parlor. Not the scene I envisioned when I was ready to get my daughter’s ears pierced. Want to get a second piercing, just pop in to Studs and get it done. Like going for a manicure. But with all the protection and expertise you would want when putting a needle through a body part.

And Studs is my kind of marketing — they love a pun!! We’re all ears has been their tagline. It made it clear. No tattoos. But also, no noses, no eyebrows, no belly buttons. Ears done well. So when I received a note to my inbox that Studs was launching nose piercing I thought “No(se) way! I’m all ears!!” and wanted the full scoop. Didn’t they say they were just ears, but also the big merchandising question — why now??? What in this current consumer climate, what data, led to needing to launch nose piercing?

Co-founder and CEO Anna Harman spoke with me and we talked all about it. Apparently their shoppers never saw Studs as ears only. Studs employees kept hearing the same question: Do you do noses? So Harman sent a regional manager to one studio for a weekend and asked them to count. She expected three inquiries. They counted 27.

I was curious about this after I saw a friend’s teenage daughter with a nose piercing. I realized I didn’t have the data for how common this was in high school these days. (Ugh, that makes me sound so old.) When I texted my mom friends, a lot of their middle and high school daughters want a nose piercing or another ear piercing. It’s the nose I keep coming back to because the multiple ear piercing wasn’t surprising and that is a trend we’ve seen for some time.

From a business strategy and merchandising angle, Studs didn’t need new stores, new staff or a new brand to do this. It added a new reason to walk into Studs — and from the regional manager’s count, the customer was already walking in expecting this! Listen to your customers and they will tell you how to grow your business!! Same stores, same business model, a low level lift to add some additional training for their piercers. But they didn’t have to build new locations or even add a new reason to come back since customers were already walking into the Studs studios looking for this service.

As of yesterday, all 43 Studs studios pierce nostrils (not septums), launching with Troye Sivan alongside his new album, She’s the Best.

The press release calls this a “high-margin customer acquisition tool” that boosts “customer lifetime value.” Translation for non-retailers: a piercing isn’t a one-time purchase. It’s a reason to come back, for the next hole, more studs. Nose piercing gives the customer who already has her ear finished a reason to return. And it gives Studs a shot at shoppers who’d otherwise end up at another mall piercing counter or back at the tattoo parlor when they would rather get pierced at Studs.

I talked with Anna about how it happened. (Condensed and edited for clarity and length.)

Sarah Shapiro: You built a brand on “we’re all ears.” What changed?
Anna Harman: If you’d asked me three or four years ago, I would have said we’d never do this. I was personally a little resistant. I liked the clarity of being experts at one thing. But customers weren’t perceiving us as ears-only. We were getting tons of inquiries: Do you do noses? Do you do noses? The customer doesn’t think we shouldn’t do this. The customer thinks we should, and that’s why they keep asking.

Sarah: Why nostrils and not septums?
Anna: We train every piercer in-house through Studs Academy, a six-week paid apprenticeship. There’s no beauty school for piercing, so we built one. Nostril piercing is very comparable to certain ear piercings from a skills perspective, so we already had the training to do it at the same level. And nostrils today are as ubiquitous as advanced ear piercing. Nobody comes to Studs expecting dermals.

Sarah: Multiple ear piercings stopped being edgy and pretty standard. Is the nose next?
Anna: There’s a lot of crossover. Cultural norms around body modification have changed. Before we launched, I spent a lot of time looking at people’s ears and realized everyone has tons of piercings. Start doing that with noses and you’ll see the same thing. Way more people have their nose pierced than you’d think.

Sarah: How hard was the rollout?
Anna: Easier than we expected. We’d been overly precious about the ear. Most of our licensing already permitted it, and where it didn’t, we updated it. We changed signage, and our education team traveled the country training existing piercers. The team is excited. It’s something new for them to learn.

Sarah: So, have you gotten yours?
Anna: No. For me, it feels like a bridge too far. But my godmother, who’s in her late 60s, just got a nose piercing.

Let me know in the comments, do you have your nose pierced? Is this on the horizon for you personally?

What Premium Subscribers Read This Week

• This week behind the paywall at Private Label I wrote about Chavie Lieber’s WSJ interview with Danielle Bernstein (gift link), her brand We Wore What, and her apology letter she was going to post to Substack. I loved reading the comments where explained that buying a knockoff helps when you can’t afford the real thing, but saving up for the original adds to loving it in a way you can’t quite explain. made the point that buying from a brand that “takes inspiration” depends on what the founder means to you.

  Since I posted, Danielle shared her apology letter on Substack “15 Years Online: What I Built, What I Got Wrong, and What Comes Next”. In terms of the design and the knock offs she wrote that “there were designs over the years that should never have made it through our process,” and that We Wore What has “strengthened how designs are reviewed before they reach customers.” But she doesn’t explain what happened before and what the process will be now. We can watch closely to see what shows up to see if there is a notable difference. The letter closes by introducing We Wore What Premium and the new branding.

  The thing I keep thinking about is that Lieber’s WSJ article ended with her announcement about the Substack saying that she would be using AI “for ideating and coming up with structures” but does the writing herself. Out of curiosity I ran the letter through Pangram, an AI detection tool that Substack has also partnered with. It came back stating that 87 percent of the text was AI written. This is a detection score and isn’t a guarantee that AI was used in the writing but I do find this interesting. Here’s what I’m curious about, if an apology was written with AI, what is the impact and meaning?

• Tuesday I covered the Spring Summer 2027 runway details that I think will be showing up in merchandising strategies. From Miu Miu’s and Chanel’s runway to brooches driving revenue — and I see that already happening this season. No reason to wait when stores can capitalize on it now. I also dug into the magic of the Dries Van Noten price points. Plus, my take as a former Williams-Sonoma buyer on its legal setback against Quince, and why Nike’s plan to make Jordans scarce again could fall flat.

In My Feed

• Pretty sure we are all obsessed with Rachel Ojuromi aka .@giverachelashot on Instagram who walked the Chanel runway show this week in Paris. She has had some amazing Instagram content that led to that opportunity and wrote about her in The Cut. I was super curious about her rise on Instagram after the show and her story started making the rounds. In the last 14 days she has gained 160,000 new followers and 30 days ago she was at 180K followers. She currently has 358,000 followers (over the course of me writing this she added another 4,000 followers.)

• I love that my Instagram feed has been filled with images and accolades celebrating Argent’s 10 year anniversary celebration! Pantsuits (and lots of pockets) for all! “Hillary Clinton, Chloe Fineman and Esther Perel Toast Argent and the Pantsuit” (gift link). I covered the brand and their recent raise last month and if you are looking for a blazer, I highly recommend this one and pair it with a denim.

• started posting on Substack. Her first post is an interview with Carolina Herrera creative director Wes Gordon. Kloss is the CEO of Bedford Media which acquired i-D magazine and Life magazine and is an investor in W magazine.

• Because I love digging into the data, the top September links were: Eckhaus Latta x J.Crew, Sézane’s New Balance collab and their Max button-up shirt, and these classic Margaux loafers.

• It’s really early in October, but you are already loving these sneakers that a stylist spotted all over Paris, a tween pjs x GRWM collab, Gap’s CashSoft sweaters, Sarah Creal’s new eyeliner shade, and the new On workout apparel.

Made just for you — always. See you Tuesday

xx, Sarah Shapiro

Private Label Issue 60

Catching Up:

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Quick note: some links here are affiliate links — I may earn a small commission if you shop through them, at no cost to you. It helps keep this newsletter going. Gifted items are marked with an *. All opinions are my own, and everything I share, I’d tell my best friend about and probably already have.

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In this send: A merchant’s take on Danielle Bernstein’s We Wore What rebrand and what “inspired by” means in fashion. Plus: Victoria Beckham’s $75 lipstick, the jewelry case that reminds me of Trapper Keepers, Uniqlo returns to SF, art collaborations, Madelyn Somers Made Some track jackets, made a t-shirt, Chavie Lieber, the Chrysler Building’s upcoming glow up, summer camp jewelry, and ShopMy.

New Collabs

• Maybe more of a true exclusive but there are also three styles that a collaboration. Barbour x J.Crew on a candy apple green coat, a waxed Black Watch plaid coat, and a super traditional Barbour style.

• Another J.Crew collab, this time with ‘47 on a heritage inspired collegiate collection. This feels SO SO SO J.Crew. I’m always curious in these situations how the schools were selected. Was it by zip code data (seeing which universities order from J.Crew the most), an agreement with ‘47 on what the budget would allow, other agreements that ‘47 has in place???

• Béis x Rare Beauty collab. Looks like the perfect holiday gift for a college student or a Gen Z-Alpha who needs a suitcase.

Art Collab Corner

• Barrie, the knitwear house that is owned by Chanel and previously has collab’ed with Sofia Coppola, has a collaboration with Damien Hirst. More polka dot looks. The collection launches October 14th.

• Gap x Whitney on a Roy Lichtenstein collection. I think the fleece looks fantastically fun.

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New Launches

• Tuesday I did a Forecast on how I would assort the trend of shearling shoes this season. It is a trend I’ve seen really taking off — a leather outer with a shearling liner. But the newest brand to launch at Mytheresa, Mou, is more of the casual and traditional shearling boots, booties, and mules. What I like about this brand, is if you want something interesting and looking for a brand other than the one we all think about when we imagine shearling boots, you have another option. Mini style out: The pair I’d wear, the traditional option, the cozy statement slip-on, and the real statement pair ready for Aprés Ski.

• An item that should be on gift guides, I love this travel jewelry organizer and I told Ariel Gordon this feels way cooler than a trapper keeper and gives the same joy vibes.

• I have one J.Crew sweater in my drawer, I believe it is about to enter its third winter with me. I consider it to be my coziest sweater — a black brushed cashmere crewneck. The cashmere brushed collection has launched but I’m surprised the solid crewnecks aren’t on the site. I’m assuming the basics are coming later??

• Made Some Sportswear, the board shorts and board pants that were a huge hit and ShopMy top link this summer, just launched a cool new warm-up jacket and tote bag. I love that Madelyn Somers did the warm-up jacket as designer track jackets from YSL, Prada, and Miu Miu (and of course the Reformation x Umbro one quickly sold out) have been trending. Made Some’s version looks fantastic.

• launched Oksana Worns, her own clasp t-shirt will be for sale on her Substack, , on October 14th. I love this approach. Have an idea for a thing, and just do it. Can be a single t-shirt. Maybe it becomes something more. But just do the thing. As she said in :

  ES: If your new shirt could talk, what would she say?

  LS: Do it for yourself.

New Beauty Launches — Holiday Tracker Continues

I’ll keep updating the Private Label Holiday 2026 Tracker, I like having one spot to organize it all. What’s new this week:

• Violette_fr has a whole slew of Holiday SKUs. I’d happily gift this set because I have the lipstick and love it. And this is the set I’d gift myself because I haven’t tried these products yet and it is an easy way to try (or great for travel).

• Fara Homidi — if you have a friend to get a special small item for, the type of indulgence you might not buy for yourself, this is the one to get. The packaging on Fara Homidi feels like a real upgrade. There is also a set of 3 pencils. I like the product, but honestly feels like a lot of packaging for three pencils. I’d rather see a reusable pencil zip case (this is the designer version of what I’m thinking), tube, or a thick reusable rubber band with the FH logo.

• New lipsticks from Victoria Beckham. Rouge Victoria. We need to talk about the price. It is $75 for a tube. I took a quick look at a few designer lipsticks for comparison. The VB Rouge Victoria is $11 under Hermès ($86 — but currently on sale for 15 percent off here). Dries Van Noten is $85 all in, also refillable, with $42 refills. Westman Atelier ($50) come in well below VB. WA is also refillable but it looks like the $34 refills on the WA site are all currently OOS1. From WA Je Rêve is my go-to shade.

  For a quick comparison in how the brands position themselves, I also looked at complexion. VB's foundation is $110 for 30 mL versus Westman Atelier's* $69, about 60% more. (Note, I wear both of these foundations and love them both. I only wear foundation occasionally.) Victoria is charging a hefty price for the lipstick in a “keepsake” case, but currently it doesn’t appear to be refillable. Maybe the refills come later?

• Also in the land of beauty launches and Victoria Beckham, she has invested $3 million in daughter Harper Beckham’s new beauty venture, Harlo by Harper.

• I’m not considering this holiday, but I love Vintner’s Daughters for their slow growth and development. According to their marketing, the new Vintner’s Daughter Structural Facial took two and a half years to develop. You can get the facial at select spas, but they also released the Active Refining Mask which already appears to be out since they made a limited quantity. I still occasionally use their Active Botanical Serum and have for years. It feels so decadent.

Wear Credit Is Due

Chavie Lieber interviewed Danielle Bernstein, the Influencer and Entrepreneur behind the We Wore What blog and brand, for the WSJ. I read “She’s the Internet’s Most Polarizing Fashion Influencer — and She Knows It” (gift link) and had spiraling thoughts before I dug in, and of course they are still in my head spiraling even more after reading. In the article Bernstein explained that with her rebrand (more on that below) she will continue to take inspiration from other brands, but now it will be more luxury and designer labels like Khaite and The Row and she defends this by saying plenty of other brands do this too.

Yes, many brands do this, but the approach is still giving me pause.

What a $1,490 sandal from The Row and Steve Madden's Beatles defense tell us about WeWoreWhat's next move.

Read more

In this send: How brands protect the thing that made them famous: Nike rethinking their icon strategy, Williams-Sonoma took on Quince and we have a judge’s decision on the claims, and what's in a name for beauty brands? Plus: Coco's own 2.55, 83 pairs of heels, the Glossier mini fragrance math, cling wrap masks, Elmo, Miu Miu x Wrangler, brooches, Courtney Grow, BonBon, 19 shearling shoes, Pillow Talk, Panda Dunks and any Paris runway favorites?

🛍️ Quick note: I write a lot (too much good stuff to share!) If you’re reading via email only, you may need to click through to the web version or read on the Substack app. I promise it will be worth it. 🛍️

Fresh Receipts

New Beauty

Ahead of Q4 and holiday gifting, huge for beauty, there are so many new launches. I’ve been tracking all of them here. One interesting detail is which brands are launching on their own site first, and which are launching first in the Sephora app.

• Fara Homidi is launching their holiday exclusive — a Shine Baume and the Blonzer — first on their own site on Wednesday and then on the Sephora app October 12th. They also have a 3 lip pencil set that is launching for holiday. I have this lip pencil and I’m a fan. It is subtle and stays on.

• A lesson in how to expand a category: InnBeauty Project has their Extreme Cream, their popular moisturizer, and then they expanded the Extreme category with Extreme Cleanse. For Holiday they are taking the opportunity to launch three more Extremes — Extreme Lip, Extreme Body, and Extreme Body Scrub — and packing together as a holiday trio. This is the type of category expansion that brands will go after to really build out their revenue. A proven product, that has a somewhat cult following, to try more from the brand.

• Glossier is pushing their best asset, the fragrance. The fragrance is even cuter in mini bottles although they have had 8 mL travel sizes, they are introducing a new 5 mL set. Launching first in the Sephora app, then on Sephora and Glossier.

  • The fragrance math:

    • This Holiday set: 4-piece mini set: $64 for four 5 mL bottles. $16 per mini bottle, or $3.20 per mL (Not the most expensive, but priced higher)

    • 8 mL travel spray: $32, or $4.00 per mL (the least amount, the most expensive per mL)

    • 50 mL: $82, or $1.64 per mL

    • 100 mL: $116, or $1.16 per mL (go big or go home, the best deal if you know what you like)

  • Why would Glossier price it this way??: This set is for trying the scents, not value pricing fragrance to give you the best deal. It lands at a magic price point of under the $75 but over $50, and as a gift that could be a target price. At least it is under $100. Sets like this mean the recipient is more likely to find their next favorite fragrance.

• Going her own way: Bobbi Brown has been opening her own stores and avoiding Sephora and traditional retail. So no launch in the Sephora app, but she is launching The Bobbi Kit 6.0 this week with her essentials and a few new SKUs and shades.

• e.l.f. brands is going where the teens are going — to fragrance and body care. It makes sense to offer an opening price point alternative to Sol de Janeiro. There is an e.l.f. mist for $13 and an e.l.f. body cream for $13.

• Along with Yise Beauty’s Holiday launch, they also are launching a new clear hydro-gel sheet mask. Xtreme Glass Sheet Mask. If you see someone who looks like they have cling wrap on their face, it's probably this. Or it's this TikTok trend of people using actual plastic wrap, which makes no sense to me. How is that easier than just putting the product on your face? More on Yise below.

New Fashion

• Bummer! This Liberowe velvet blouse sold out fast, but I don’t know how many units they had. It has a beautiful cut, perfect for holiday dressing, and even though it is described as a “top” it looks like a blazer you wear without a top underneath. It’s beautiful. More available here.

• Margaux’s new boots. A few styles are carryover (styles that Margaux has had in the past, like the Downtown Boot, and the West Chelsea Boot) but the new boots include an update to the West Chelsea Boot — the City Chelsea Boot is a small heel on the West Chelsea. Other examples of Margaux updating a proven seller is the Phoebe Boot, which is a boot take on their Phoebe flat. According to a source at Margaux, the Phoebe flats are the best selling style in the San Francisco Fillmore location. Merchandise strategy note, the product detail page for the Phoebe Flat should be updated to include the new inspired Phoebe Boot to the “you might also like” section.

  Other new boots include the tall Charlie Boot that is in the recently launched Alison Roman collab. The Hayes Boot is a style that my merchant brain tells me is a test, because it is only offered in a single black leather SKU1 and a single brown suede SKU. If the style does well they can bring it back or expand colors.

• New York or Nowhere x Sesame Street is a pretty extensive collab. Very SKU heavy with sweatshirts, t-shirts, hats, and stuffies of Elmo and Cookie Monster. I worked with Sesame Street on a collab/licensing deal once and the Elmo styles sell like 4 to 1 versus the others. Everyone loves Elmo!

• Call It By Your Name has a cute collab with Timeless Pearly, a jewelry line, for jewelry travel pouches that make a cute holiday gift. Mini round zip and a jewelry roll.

• Mini mochi handbags from Parker Thatch. A smaller dumpling of a clutch.

• Courtney Grow x Shopbop: Grow collabed with Shopbop to showcase her edit. When you know an influencer really drives revenue for your brand, it makes sense to take the affiliate link relationship deeper. There are influencers who do really well converting for brands by sharing their hearts or their carts with their audience. Grow’s collab with Reformation I heard did incredibly well. This is another industry and LTK can disrupt — playing as talent scout. They have the data around which influencers are converting the best for retailers, and then the retailer can work directly with the influencer (or their manager, in this case Grow works with Brigade). Deals like this mean the influencer can negotiate a larger affiliate commission and an additional fee for being the face of the brand, in the images, and a styling or edit fee as well.

A Lil Something Different

• Perhaps there are others reading that have a sweet tooth like I do. I love BonBon and I’ve actually been intrigued by watching the expansion strategy of BonBon, a Swedish Candy shop that started on the Lower East Side in NYC, and Lil Sweet Treat, another sweet & sour gummy candy shop that opened first in the West Village in NYC. But Lil Sweet Treat has been rapidly expanding locations across the U.S. Now BonBon is landing in Target with pre-packaged treats (and here). Two different expansion strategies at play. Lil Sweet Treat has also done collabs with brands like Poppi, Conair, and the new movie from Amazon Prime, The Love Hypothesis. BonBon previously collabed with Tory Burch.

Forecasting

This new Jude shearling style sent me down a fashion spiral of how shearling lined shoes are a whole category now. Consider this how I would edit the assortment if I was the buyer for shoes. Not as strategic as a Style Out, but how I would bring the trend in to make a statement.

Shearling, once just for slippers, then we slipped into Uggs…shearling lined shoes have always leaned more casual until we started to see The Row Stella shearling lined ballet flats and ballet flats and loafers getting more dressed up. But cozy still. Last winter the Aprés by Le Monde Béryl really took off (I blame, in a good way, and Magasin for that). So I started digging into the shearling lined shoe trend as I would certainly Forecast this to be a strong Q4 seller and gift giving. While shoes typically aren’t a huge gift category, slippers and Ugg style shoes have been, so this one can slip right in. It is a category that hasn’t blown-up yet so many are still treading lightly and starting to add a few to their closet. There are finally enough options that feels like you can find something no matter what your taste is.

• The Luxe are these from The Row. If you can find them. And I love these from Christen too.

• In the Good — Better — Best pricing tiers, I consider these to be the most “better” of the bunch. (Let’s call these the “good” option, same with these from Jenni Kayne.)

• For Gen Z or anyone who wants to dip a toe in, stick with Ugg’s new version.

• For warmer temps, I love this (and own) this pair. When it is still warm outside but I want to feel fall, this is what I wear. Another option here if you don’t want to show your toes.

• If you want shearling and everyone to know what brand you are wearing, go for Gucci mules. The Princetown Mules have been around since 2015.

• Cosplaying L.L. Bean but more luxe: The Row and Christopher Esber.

• The preppiest of the bunch from Emme Parsons.

• Shearling lined sneakers: Miu Miu, and Isabel Marant.

• Ladylike from Magda Butrym and Jimmy Choo.

• And from the designer that put mesh shoes on feet everywhere, Alaïa mary janes and Alaïa mules.

• And we haven’t even touched on booties, but I’m sure we’ll get there soon.

19 options, I’m definitely over assorted but I love them all. I’m personally on the hunt for these but likely will end up buying these when I go check out their new store on the UES.

Field Notes

• Coco’s Handbag & So Many Shoes at Chanel: So many exciting moments from the Paris runway shows. Since I’ve been pouring over the Chanel looks a few thoughts:

  • Model Dyanira Hurbuscher opened and closed the show carrying Gabrielle Chanel’s own 2.55, borrowed from the house’s Patrimoine archives. I expect a rush on vintage 2.55’s. If you plan to purchase do it now. The older and more beat up, the better. Here, here, here, and here. Even better, go to fancy estate sales. I wonder if we will see any go up for auction from the 1970s?

  • And Chanel hauls are not going anywhere. All 83 looks on the runway had a different pair of heels. That is a lot of SKUs to launch. That could be one way to handle scarcity, not to go too deep in units on any one style. But that makes a lot of inventory and styles to manage. Will everyone covet a few styles, or will there be more favorites? Expect diversity across the different boutiques and needing a or The Coveted to help track down a pair.

Behind the paywall: the Miu Miu, Dries Van Noten and Celine details I'd bet on for next year's sales floor, why Nike's scarcity plan might backfire, a former Williams-Sonoma buyer's take on the Quince ruling, and what Yise could learn from Charlotte Tilbury's Pillow Talk playbook.

Read more

In this send: A personal stylist takes her clients shopping in Paris, store by store and with receipts: Charvet, Christen, Sabbia Rosa, and the vintage Rolex that's "impossible to find." Plus: 3 generations read WYouth, Rainbow flip flops, Zendaya x On, 12 shirts for the price of 2, Crown Affair’s Vault, a sensitive eyeliner* that works, two-tone Tabis, Sofia Coppola and WWSCD, and do you have a favorite spot to shop in Paris? Don’t gatekeep — share!

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🛍️ Quick note: I write a lot (too much good stuff to share!) If you’re reading via email only, you may need to click through to the web version or read on the Substack app. I promise it will be worth it. 🛍️

Fresh Receipts

• New collab between Zendaya x On (plus Law Roach). A few pieces I wanted to point out — I’m very into the baseball sweatshirt, the tipped ribbed tank top, an insulated anorak in all black, workout pants that AREN’T leggings, and I want to see the Cloudnova Moon Mary Janes On.

• I am so excited when a brand “goes big or goes home” for the holidays. Way to go and the new Crown Affair The Vault set for the holiday gift season. If going THAT big isn’t what you had planned, there are other options — like this set which I own each item included and love.

• New Holiday gift sets from Ilia. I’ve been playing with the brand’s new waterproof eyeliner* and I really really like it! I recommend for sensitive eyes. (I also use the Victoria Beckham kajal eyeliner — that one I get a darker line, but the Ilia is definitely better suited for sensitive eyes.)

• People love Sarah Creal’s kajal eyeliner and the newest shade to launch is Cairo, a shimmer gold shade.

• Fall shirting has arrived from Comme Si.

• Ever since started teasing her new shade of Piscine blue (yeah, that shade of blue) on her Instagram Stories I could tell it was going to sell out. Sure enough, it launched Friday and by the evening only size Large was left.

• Wintery easy party pants have started to deliver — see Donni’s take on the silky surfer pants. Reformation’s easy party pants here in a rich jewel tone.

• Last year I wore my &daughter cardigan all winter — and I’ll wear again this year. This season I’m really into the new, almost grandpa style, of this collared cardigan.

• So smart of Nour Hammour to not attach these two pieces. I love how their cashmere knit set is a layered long sleeve and short sleeve t-shirt but you can wear together or separate. It’s like three-in-one! If we want to do some merchandising math, if you buy both the black and white version you would have a total of 12 different possible ways to wear.

• More belted interest from Tibi. Also from Tibi, is it a sneaker-y jazz shoe or a jazz shoe that is a sneaker?

• Has anyone purchased holiday PJs yet?

Three Generations, One Magazine: WYouth

I’m a Gen X mom who as a teen lived for magazines. Obsessed. Growing up in Virginia Beach, Va. this was my entry into the world of fashion and I was hooked. I subscribed to all of them — Teen, Seventeen, YM, Sassy, plus all of the special Prom issues (years before I ever attended a prom). So when WYouth (pronounced “double youth”) new biannual magazine from W was announced I couldn’t wait to get a copy. Mostly for me, but to also see what my thirteen year old thought of it. My college senior babysitter was at the house this week too so I captured her thoughts. Here is what each of us thought:

The 13 Year Old

• She wanted the brands she actually shops advertised and in the editorials: Garage, Depop, Edikted, Hollister, Abercrombie & Fitch.

• She wanted to see beauty ads, again from the brands she likes: Rare Beauty, Kosas, and Sol de Janeiro. She especially wanted to see cool sets for $25-$35 as that is what she and her friends gift each other because they see so much value in the sets. You can try a lot of things and they love “a $50 value for $25” messaging.

• She wanted more tips and tricks. Her words: she wants “Pinterest in a book,” complete with outfit layouts for how to style and how to style your hair.

• She wouldn’t rip the paper dolls out or the stickers. Like mother like daughter, she doesn’t like to rip up magazines.

• Her current favorite magazine is Girls’ Life, which is much more teen-focused. [Note from Sarah: for the younger set I also like Anyway and Kazoo for the elementary school age kids.]

The College Senior

• She loved the layouts, the fonts, the fun colors, and the celebrities featured. To her it feels “classy and inspirational”.

• She can tell it’s aimed at young adults, not teens. Some brands are pricey for Gen Z, and certainly for a college student.

• She’d love to see more written pieces. A good article “holds attention longer than photos”.

• Her favorites: a Miu Miu ad that featured Hailey Bieber (“love Hailey Bieber!”), the K-pop story “Seoul Searching” got the comment that it is always a hit, Romy Mars on “A Girl’s Best Friend” was a spread she loved — Romy has blown up on TikTok, and the Sofia Coppola syllabus at the end for both the story and highlight of Sofia [Note from Sarah: I agree with the Sofia comment too. I mean, WWSCD — What Would Sofia Coppola Do? And Wear!]

The Gen X Mom (Note from Sarah: that’s me)

• I loved seeing a fresh magazine and the size and weight are perfect.

• The contributors page as a collage of their younger photos was well matched for the magazine.

• The Nuuly ad was great. I liked seeing Nuuly in print, and if you’ve seen the memes of Nuuly at the post office near college campuses then you know this is the right audience.

• What I noticed: no prices! You used to see prices for every item, even K-mart t-shirts for $7.94. But someone had to fact check all of those details and prices change constantly now. With this being a biannual issue, not a new magazine every month, it has to stand the test of time and the long lead times of print mean the prices can’t be updated. This is also why we don’t see prices in catalogs or mailers. So leaving prices out makes sense, but it takes away that feeling of wanting to tab a page so you can buy it.

The verdict — I love it. Will be awhile before my teen reads but I’m not eager for her to grow-up too fast either. I so appreciated hearing my college age sitter and her perspective. Now I have a holiday gift idea for her — a subscription! Plus a cash bonus because, come on, she’s in college and she drives my kids around a lot. I had fun pulling out this June 1997 Seventeen (I saved this copy because a sketch I drew was published in it!)

Forecasting - More from the Teen Scene

• The new party shoe? Rainbow Flip Flops: School dances were a dressy shoe thing, then everything went more casual and dances and B’nai Mitzvahs became a sneaker paired with a party dress. Now, after the Rainbow Flip Flop came onto the scene last spring, they have now crashed the dance floor too.

  High schoolers told me their HoCo (Homecoming) dresses were worn with either sneakers or Rainbows. This is the scene in California with warmer weather at least. Same story at my daughter’s junior high dance. The boys wore exactly what they wore to school, t-shirts and shorts. The girls swapped their usual Lululemon shorts and Garage or Hollister tanks for short dresses, then finished the look with Rainbows or their school sneakers.

Field Notes — How a Stylist Shops Paris

Elyse Winter gave us tips and tricks for how to style a button-up, and she is my first call when I’m stuck in the dressing room and can’t decide if an item must come home with me. She helped me find a dress for me to wear to my daughter’s Bat Mitzvah party two weeks before the event (yeah, that timeline is my fault). So when I noticed that she was in Paris shopping with clients I asked for the play-by-play.

Shall we all go shopping with a personal stylist? Here are all the details and insights directly from Elyse as she took her clients shopping through the City of Light in September.

Le Grand Magasin

Le Bon Marché — Open since 1838 and bought by Bernard Arnault in 1984. It is now part of LVMH. Le Bon Marché is my personal one must visit and always at the top of my Channel Checks. The buy is excellent, the shop-in-shops are great, plenty of fun activations, and during Paris Fashion Week it's a treat to see what the store is featuring. If you only visit one grand magasin in Paris, make it this one. It feels like a little of the old Saks, a bit of Nordstrom's classic heritage, and a pinch of Bloomingdale's trends.

• Elyse agrees, “I think best department store in Paris.”

• Standout brand: Baziszt. In the U.S. you can find Baziszt at select locations of The Webster. There is also a Baziszt boutique in Paris or you can find at Le Bon Marché and a few other spots.

• There was a huge Nili Lotan section (Note from Sarah: a good idea to pack for the trip, this dress to wear with a blazer like this for dinners out), Blaze Milano looked good (Note from Sarah: I love this blazer), and The Row had lizard wallets (bought one for a client), plus bags and soft loafers, but Elyse reminded me that there was nothing unique to Paris, including clothing that she spotted during this visit.

La Samaritaine

The smallest of the big Parisian department stores is La Samaritaine. It has been around since 1870. In 2001 LVMH took a majority stake in the department store, but then the store closed in 2005 for safety reasons. In 2010 LVMH took complete ownership and the store finally reopened in 2021.

• “Really cute.” Lots of little pop-ups and more contemporary brands, but still the classics like Max Mara and Louis Vuitton (which makes sense given the LVMH ownership).

• Purchase: Her best friend bought a necklace from the Daphine pop-up. This stand was Elyse’s favorite at the store and is priced really sharp. [Note from Sarah: When I searched up this brand I found some pieces I love! Like these cuff links, and this safety-pin pin.]

• A very cute Jellycat setup for kids’ gifts

Boutiques

Charvet — for more of a deep dive on Charvet, check out this recent reporting.

Elyse’s feedback was that their sales associate was incredible. Patient, and kind. But inventory was non-existent beyond white shirts for women’s, men’s floor had plenty of options. There was an option to do custom but with the timeframe they weren’t able to make that happen this trip.

• Tip: message ahead before you land and they can start cutting for you, like special colors or flannels

• Sizes were limited across the board. Slippers only came in XS or L, with no S or M.

• Elyse went to every floor and met a woman who has worked there 30 years, doing only silks.

• Purchased: 2 classic white shirts. Also purchased a kid’s shirt for her baby.

• It still feels family-run with no real sign beyond the inventory situation of the Chanel acquisition. But Elyse still noted: felt like something was “coming or happening.”

Note from Sarah: Charvet had two big moments land at once: the Chanel acquisition, and the Chanel and Charvet conversation that put the 188 year old shirt maker in just about every media outlet (including from moi for Puck’s Line Sheet). From the outside, it's hard to know which one impacted Charvet the most, but my bet is on all the articles that ran.

I know this is where you expect me to say Charvet should analyze the data, project the inventory forecast needs, ramp up supply and widen distribution, especially on the slippers. But y'all, this is Charvet. I want it to stay Charvet. You can always invest in a custom shirt. It'll cost you, and it's worth it.

Christen (shoes, now ready-to-wear too)

• Elyse: “sick” (translation, she loved it)

• Missed a scheduled appointment but was able to walk in to shop.

• Very clean, cool store with great inventory

• For more on the designer Nina Christen, who designed for The Row and Phoebe Philo era Celine, check out Rory Satran’s reporting in the WSJ [gift link] from 2024.

• Note from Sarah: I’ve heard good things on Christen’s knits and the Christen two-tone Tabi has an avid fan base. People love this shoe!

Candice Fauchon

• Unisex pajamas you can wear day or night/sleep. Made with Thomas Mason Egyptian cotton.

• Fauchon works in the shop herself, and she was the one helping them

• Fauchon was wearing one of these tops for daytime while working in the boutique.

• Purchased: 2 pairs of pajamas

Sabbia Rosa

• Sabbia Rosa offers custom pieces, and you can also buy off the rack in limited colors

• Silk and lace, all made in Paris

• Purchased: a custom nightgown to be worn as a dress

By Marie

• By Marie is very small, but carries Le Monde Béryl, Blazé Milano, Marie Lichtenberg, and Rue de Verneuil bags.

• Purchased: A red dice charm (similar) by Marie Lichtenberg. Sadly, long necklace (”not coming home”) $$$$.

• Note from Sarah: Le Monde Béryl is opening in NYC just off of Madison Avenue. Check out their Stella flats, my personal favorite and a pair I own.

Salome Rico

• A showroom: very small and cute.

• Purchased: A Gelato ring (image above)

Rue de Verneuil

• The store is “the size of a closet,” as in an NYC studio closet at best.

• This is the tote (large) that Elyse recommends and her client purchased.

H-O-R-S-E (pop-up)

• Small but great to see IRL, and they had their sold-out shorts in stock

• Note from Sarah: If you can’t get to Paris, you can order here. The track pants, long short, short shorts, and my favorite piece is this polo sweatshirt that I wear every week. I usually like to size up in my tops, especially sweatshirts, but for this one I took the smaller size. The small on me had plenty of room and still feels oversized since I’m petite.

The Flagships

• Saint Laurent concept store: Colette-esque vibes, but “nothing really to buy unless you want a $500 keychain or ashtray”

• Chanel: had the suede maxi handbag everyone wants, in beige and olive, plus tons of new shoes. [Note from Sarah: the new delivery arrived to stores around this time.]

• Fendi: had all the new bags, “stunning like art.” Elyse’s favorites: the mirrored Baguette, which also comes in black, and the exotics. The tiger one is sold out. Runway pre-orders are open now.

• Celine: cool, with a beautiful store and a good bag selection. The keychains were the highlight.

• Bode: a “wow destination” with great service. She and a client tried things on but didn’t buy. Mostly the same as LA or online.

• The Frankie Shop: the men’s section was especially strong

• Repetto: stopped in, but no sizes available — very sold out. [Note from Sarah: separate from my Charvet comment above about inventory, I’d like to see Repetto be in stock in their Hero styles — the ballet flats, the Zizi jazz shoe, and the ballet pump. Personally I keep debating this ballet pump since it is a silhouette I don’t own yet. I love the low heel, especially to wear with jeans like these*.]

Vintage & Watches

• Préclothed: so expensive (you’ve been warned). Amazing Hermès ready-to-wear selection and very knowledgeable staff.

• Desert Vintage: a small, curated selection, priced fine but still higher end. Passed on a YSL piece at $2K because it was slightly worn.

• Collector Square: very nice service. The site said you need an appointment, but she walked in and they were lovely. Almost bought an exotic Hermès Kelly bag, but it had no CITES paperwork. [Note from Sarah: CITES is an international treaty that regulates the trade of protected species (like crocodile, alligator, and lizard skins) that is used in these luxury handbags. Exotic pieces need specific paperwork to cross borders often times. So while you can get the vintage handbags without the paperwork for less $$, you likely will have trouble traveling with it. Note!! I’m not a lawyer!! This is not legal advice.]

• Antoine de Macedo (vintage watches, 28 rue Madame, plus a second location): amazing inventory. Priced similar to Collector Square, but “very very knowledgeable and honest” and gave her tons of advice.

• The watch she bought: a vintage gold Rolex. The colored dial is what drives the price. Stores told her it’s very rare and “impossible to find,” and noticed that Farfetch had listed for more than she paid. Similar: vintage gold Rolex.

The Insider’s Scoop

• Elyse says most people were wearing sneakers on the street, especially this brand which was stocked at Le Bon Marché.

• But sales associates were wearing ballet flats mostly.

• Note on Rubirosa’s in Paris, I was bummed to hear this but I’ve now heard from multiple people who don’t know each other: the customer service, especially with no dressing rooms, has been frustrating and disappointing for shoppers.

More Paris Guides I Love

• From , her recent Paris and Milan trip guide. Seeing Paris through the eyes of a Creative Director.

• , another great personal stylist, was in Paris in December and her guide is here.

• Before a family trip 2 years ago I purchased ’s extremely thorough guide. Mine is highlighted and tabbed and ready to use again.

• moved to Paris from L.A. and has a restaurant guide and plenty of other Paris insights.

• I love reading and following for the Parisian style edits and is another fabulous follow for her Parisian takes.

  

What Paid Subscribers read and loved this week:

• Free People says this handbag is viral, the more interesting story is that it has been a strong seller since 2025 and doesn’t look like it is due to virality. I follow the data and breakdown what is really going on with the popular handbag.

• A dispatch from Paris, what’s really selling at Sézane according to a retail analyst and the shopgirls in the Sézane Appartment.

• The merchandising math, margin, and gifting opportunities around mahjong. I don’t even play and I’m still curious about this popular game.

In My Feed

• I’m obsessed with the headline for ’s post Maybe It’s Dries Van Noten…Maybe It’s Coldwater Creek. Then she followed it up with this note. Ha! I love this insider information.

• Top links of the week in Private Label: the boots a denim expert wears with denim, the new handbag from the brand The Horse, Sézane’s New Balance collab, and the Tarte x Roller Rabbit collab.

Made just for you — always. See you Tuesday

xx, Sarah Shapiro

Private Label Issue 57

Catching Up:

It’s Saturday — are you going to Poshfest? If you are in L.A., GO!

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Quick note: some links here are affiliate links — I may earn a small commission if you shop through them, at no cost to you. It helps keep this newsletter going. Gifted items are marked with an *. All opinions are my own, and everything I share, I’d tell my best friend about and probably already have.

So I went straight to the source. Elizabeth von der Goltz has bought for and led some of the most influential stores in luxury including Bergdorf Goodman, Net-a-Porter, Matchesfashion, and Farfetch. Whew! Yes, she has long been one of my Retail Crushes. Now she's Poshmark's first-ever Chief Revenue Officer. Joining us is Jamie Hunter, Poshmark's new Fashion & Creative Director, who came from Bergdorf Goodman and Rosie Assoulin. Lesley Clifford also recently joined the Poshmark team as the VP of Merchandising and I’ll have to bring her to Private Label for a chat in the near future. Clifford was most recently the VP of Merchandising at Rothy’s.

After our chat, I took their advice straight to the Poshmark app to search for my own finds. Check out the edit below, along with a secondhand twist on this week’s Good–Better–Best for suede handbags as I search for work appropriate totes.

Paid subscribers read the interview yesterday. As a treat, today it’s free for everyone. If you like getting the good stuff first, upgrade!

Every Day is Market at Poshmark

Sarah Shapiro: Poshfest has been running for years, What’s different this time?

Elizabeth von der Goltz: It was very much a seller-only event, with panels and webinars. The seller community is really tight. They want to hear from Poshmark, and they love hanging out with each other. This is the first time we’re really opening it up. As a retailer, when you meet your customer, that loyalty and that relationship develops into something further. Imagine meeting your shopper, having them be able to come to you, follow your closet in the future because they know you. They know what kind of inventory you have.

When I came into the business, I saw the effort it took to plan these. They were three-day mega events, if the team is doing all this, why don’t we just bring in the public?

Sarah: How do you merchandise inventory you don’t own?

Elizabeth: I feel like a kid in a candy store. We have 200 million listings, and 700,000 listed per day. At this level of inventory, you have to understand what it is: breaking down 200 million listings, putting them in the right categories, and seeing where the supply and demand is. Either we’ve got so much of something and it’s selling really well. Or demand is super high and supply is tight. Or people are searching for something like crazy, and we need to surface it at the right time.

Jamie Hunter: I went to New York Fashion Week, and you clock all of the trends. Instead of waiting six months for that stuff to come in, we just start surfacing it right now. The things I saw trending at New York Fashion Week, three weeks later, are going to be in real life at Poshfest.

Sarah: Is there still a merchandising calendar or cycle you are following?

Elizabeth: Everyone always had the merchandising calendar. Our searches for things probably happen earlier than the regular market. And our audience is so wide. It’s not just a luxury customer. Canon point-and-shoots are so popular now, because young kids think that’s the best camera to have. We saw NeeDoh was hot months before it was in the New York Times [gift link].

Sarah: Elizabeth and Jamie — you both have excellent taste and built a career around merchandising around your taste. How does that show up at Poshmark?

Elizabeth: We did a company all-hands where I talked about taste. It’s not just the actual curations and clothing we’re bringing. We want to bring taste into everything that we’re doing. Even how someone’s writing a piece of code: how can that be beautiful? What is the product experience, the user experience, the product design? We’re doing a lot of brand work on that right now. I think it’s just this idea that the taste always trickles down. People are like, oh, this person, they don’t follow fashion at all, and this is how they dress. I’m like, but you dress that way because of something. You’re influenced by something. A lot of what we’re doing is bringing that taste in, so that we get that trickle-down effect as well.

Jamie: I’m looking at the data, and I hear it and I see it. I’ll grab a few of those things, but then I’m also going to grab a few things that I feel are of the moment, that people are going to respond to, and test to see if there’s a response. It’s not all about listening to trends and data, because you know how that goes. You lose emotion.

Sarah: What’s coming up next?

Elizabeth: This is our first one, but the idea is we really want to go to a different city every single year and make it larger and larger. We are also going to start doing some sort of external reporting, because it’s rich information. I think richer than what’s out there.

Getting to the good stuff

Sarah: The search term you type most, and your trick for finding what others miss?

Elizabeth: “Vintage” is probably the word I type most. But my searches are pretty random — I love going down rabbit holes. I’ll see an homage or an editorial that reminds me of a particular style, era or brand, and suddenly I’m searching for it. Then I’ll hit on something interesting, which sends me down another rabbit hole entirely. I’m not always looking for something specific — I’m looking for the thing I didn’t know I wanted until I found it.

Jamie: I don’t think I have one search term—my behavior is much more rabbit-hole-ish than that. I’ll type in something not particularly obscure, scroll until something catches my eye, click on it and then go to “similar listings.” Or I’ll start with something incredibly specific and let it take me somewhere completely different. This is how you uncover and discover! The best finds are often hiding under the least glamorous listings.

Sarah: The designer or brand that’s undervalued in resale right now?

Elizabeth: I don’t want to give away too many of my secrets! But menswear — I find incredible ’80s and ’90s Yves Saint Laurent and Christian Dior. I also love rediscovering designers who are coming back into the conversation, like Christopher Kane, and Japanese designers — Junya Watanabe, Comme des Garçons, Yohji Yamamoto. And ’90s Prada shoes are a great one. But honestly, even with the most coveted designers, there are incredible pieces hiding at great prices. You just have to go down the rabbit hole.

Jamie: I love searching for brands everyone knows but no one thinks to search vintage for. Bally, Romeo Gigli, Bruno Magli, Nancy Gonzalez, Ungaro. There are decades of really good clothes hiding behind names we’ve all somehow stopped typing into the search bar.

Sarah: Given what you’ve seen during the Spring/Summer 2027 Fashion Week(s), what should people start searching and snapping up now?

Elizabeth: Skirts, skirts, skirts! The Prada influence was everywhere. Sheer, floral prints, unexpected color combinations — fashion feels fun again. There’s also so much vintage inspiration: chinoiserie, the ’90s, great shirting, polka dots. I’d be searching vintage now because so many of those references are already out there — and you can find the originals or very similar styles on Poshmark.

Jamie: Knee-length skirts (the Prada effect), tuxedo shirts, beaded jackets, brocade, and sheer/lingerie dressing. Since fashion is cyclical — and with vintage and secondhand at our finger tips — you no longer have to wait 6 months for the trends to drop.

Sarah: What have you learned from the Poshmark community?

Elizabeth: One slightly naughty trick I’ve learned: sometimes misspelling a designer’s name leads you to the best pieces — because everyone else misses them! But the bigger thing that has amazed me is how early our community is. Things that are about to go viral, we often see happening on Poshmark first. You can see those signals in what people are searching for, selling and buying before they really break into the mainstream.

Jamie: That there really is a buyer for almost everything.

And with that — go have fun searching! Thank you Elizabeth and Jamie.
The conversation has been lightly edited and condensed.

My Searches This Week

• The Prada Effect: a Prada lipstick skirt, a ReNylon skirt, Prada picnic gingham skirt and other fabulous skirts from Dries!, Dries NWT (new with tags), YSL black and white pencil skirt, and I've been hunting for this Phoebe Philo silk skirt on Poshmark. I haven't found it (yet), so check out this color-block option.

• Inspired by Jamie Hunter’s Trend List: a vintage knee length leather Alaïa, Brooks Brothers tuxedo shirt, tuxedo shirt, Charvet tuxedo shirt, 80s white beaded silk jacket, reversible silk jacket, vintage brocade, and this brocade, vintage dressing robe, and a 30s-40s white lace nightgown.

• Dries Van Noten: a beaded vintage dress, black and silver clutch, or a green sequin handbag, and the low profile sneakers.

• Good — Better — Best Work Totes:

  • Good under $150: Longchamp, Vintage Bally black leather, and Mansur Gavriel.

  • Better $250 - $900: Nylon Chanel, Celine leather tote, Hermès Canvas Tote, and a Coach work tote in leather.

  • Best $2,000 and over: an orange Chanel Executive Tote, Hermès Victoria 35 in a gorgeous shade of red, and a Balenciaga Rodeo in Suede.

• Brooch: a Kenneth Jay Lane floral pin, Elsa Peretti Floral Pin, a Coach safety pin — like for a kilt — I’d replace the charm with something else and wear on a scarf, and Chanel CC pearls.

• Luxury for under $500: Hermès Calvi Duo card holder, a silk scarf, a Bottega Veneta belt, and Comme Des Garcons polka dot pouch.

Notes from a Posher — The Millennial Decorator

Julia Rabinowitsch, aka The Millennial Decorator, is one of the creators building a shop for Poshfest. Her edit was hand-picked from Poshmark listings, and she built it as an ideal starter secondhand closet. This includes jackets, pants, heels, and the staple clutches and bags that anchor a wardrobe. She’s bringing 50 to 60 pieces from a designer archive spanning Prada, Gucci, Armani, Dior, Hermès and more. Most pieces fall between $300 and $500, with some affordable finds under $100. Julia will be there in person and told me she loves having the opportunity to see what shoppers gravitate towards.

Plus!! Don’t forget to visit The Poshmark POV closet: Jamie Hunter’s edit of the trends and finds that are defining fashion right now. After speaking with her for this story I know she has her eyes wide-open for the best pieces.

What’s on the racks: vintage and Y2K; designer (Chanel, Prada, Gucci, Dior, Louis Vuitton, Hermès, Miu Miu); contemporary (Reformation, Staud, Dôen, Isabel Marant, Sézane, Ulla Johnson); collectible jewelry; bridal; and menswear from preppy to streetwear.

How you buy: Every piece has its own QR code. Scan it, buy it through the Poshmark app with the new Event Mode, and walk out with it. Easy peasy lemon squeezy.

My merchant take: Poshmark is helping you get to the good stuff. Which is what retailers should be doing! This is an excellent customer service and loyalty opportunity. Compare it to Sephora’s SEPHORiA event where the images (UGC = User Generated Content) from everyone who attends can be played over and over and shared on social. It helps explain to the shoppers what Poshmark is and help discover the best creators to follow and places to shop. Because if you find a Posher you like following you are more likely to come back and shop more.

Sure, there is also the downside if this wasn’t managed well to have a PR disaster like the Willy’s Chocolate Experience in Glasgow in 2024 and while the memes and content that came out of it were hilarious, the whole event was a disaster. This isn’t going to happen here. The team has planned and thought of everything.

I’m also manifesting that this Poshfest is a way to test rolling out more events that can happen globally in more cities and perhaps even a permanent location. I love shopping secondhand stores IRL because every visit the merchandise changes. It becomes true discovery in a retail environment where there is so much sameness.

Another benefit for Poshmark is they get the data for the event. They can watch their shoppers engage physically with products and other Poshers. This is something that usually happens behind a screen. I hope all the Poshmark employees that are attending are observing and taking notes and I’m sure they will download the data after and see which products sold the fastest, which Posh shops were busiest, and what the Average Order Value was. Just a few examples. (Hey Elizabeth — feel free to send me some data after! You know I love looking at the raw data for the gems and learnings.)

While you’re there: free steaming from Rowenta, on-site tailoring, and a patio with music, food trucks and free popsicles from Pinterest.

Get your tickets here

What's your best Poshmark find ever? Tell me in the comments.

Leave a comment

Made just for you — always. See you tomorrow with a Paris shopping guide from my good friend and personal stylist.

xx, Sarah Shapiro

Private Label Issue 56

Quick note: some links here are affiliate links — I may earn a small commission if you shop through them, at no cost to you. It helps keep this newsletter going. Gifted items are marked with an *. All opinions are my own, and everything I share, I’d tell my best friend about and probably already have.

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Thanks for reading Private Label!

In this send: Feedback from a retail analyst on what Sézane in Paris looks like right now, plus more merchant thoughts. Plus: Alexa Chung, great boots for denim, Holiday Beauty Tracker is live, New Balance x Sézane, Good — Better — Best Suede handbags, Poshfest, Elizabeth von der Goltz, Jamie Hunter, Needoh, SKIRTS!, Julia Rabinowitsch (aka The Millennial Decorator), Still Here, Dôen, Le Monde Béryl, Rothy’s, and have you heard of a Speed To Market Buyer? Z Supply has a job opening for one.

New Collabs

• Wasn’t sure if I should file this under “New Store Openings”, or “Launches”, but let’s go with Collabs! Sephora x Marks & Spencer. The beauty retailer is opening 100 shop-in-shops starting in the spring of 2027. There are currently only 18 Sephora locations in the U.K. so this is one way to expand quickly and get a stronger grasp on the £5.2bn UK beauty market. This reminds me of the Sephora at Kohl’s arrangement and should fare better than the Target and Ulta partnership because Sephora isn’t over saturated yet in the U.K. [Press Release]

• Ludovic de Saint Sernin x Skims launches today.

• Next week we’ll see what Reformation x Alexa Chung have been cooking up. I wonder if this plan started around the holidays last year when she attended the Reformation x Pixie Geldof Christmas Cocktail Party. The accent color and dress cut is very similar.

• Sure, Tuckernuck has already had activewear, but they are about to collab with Fanatics for some extra points.

• The Roller Rabbit x Tarte launches today.

• And before this next mention, I’ll just drop this LOL comment here:

• More Alexa Chung: Alexa Chung is the face of the Old Navy x Altuzarra that launched Wednesday. By the end of the day I saw very little sold out. No judging, I think this is fine at this point. Also interesting that on the product detail page online it notes you must return by mail. This is operationally smart because it will help them manage the inventory, reduce markdowns, and quickly turn returns into new purchases.

  

Shoppies

• I can’t stop thinking of these boots Jac Cameron from Rùadh was wearing with her jeans. They might be the perfect boots for casual denim with a slight heel.

• I love that Private Label readers know to alert me that the Hailey Jean from Gap is being restocked. All sizes and shades. My daughter loves hers and fyi size down. Back in stock on October 2nd at 12pm ET. Both online and in stores. Now you won’t have to overpay to the resellers on eBay.

• Gap’s CashSoft category has returned. Check out the half-zip.

• Donni’s new deliveries include new fall colors of the pointelle knits (I have these pants) and I also own and love this heavy cotton sweater. (Use code Sarah15 for 15 percent off.)

• Did any authors or New Yorkers order this dress from the Carolina Herrera show? Maybe go for the sweater.

• I preordered the Art Life Practice Guided Sketchbook** and it arrived this week. I’m excited to spend some time relaxing this weekend. This should be in any creative or analog gift guide this holiday season.

• Speaking of Holiday Gift Guides (yes, I said it) I’m tracking all the Holiday Beauty Launches here.

Paris Dispatch — Sézane: What’s Selling

Sézane has been a fun retailer to cover because it is in the early days of the rebrand and customers have a lot of feelings and thoughts. Last week I broke down the email they sent to loyal shoppers. This week I have a first-hand report from the Paris boutiques. One of the sharpest retail analysts I know, someone who visits stores weekly to track and misses nothing, was just in Paris and shared her notes with me. She went into the Paris Sézane Appartement (boutique) and generously shared her Channel Check with me for Private Label.

There is a buzz, but…it isn’t at the same level as this time last year. The fitting rooms were full with shoppers trying on sweaters, blouses, and the New Balance collab. I also saw in my data that the New Balance collab was selling and the brown suede 471 quickly sold out (size 11.5 still on the site) but at $110 it is well priced for Sézane. There are still many sizes of the Ecru 574 for $110. The shoppers vary in age but there aren’t many young shoppers during the Paris store visit.

Sales associates tell it like it is. When asked what the feedback from shoppers has been like, you see the split and the cracks show.

Read more

Fresh Receipts

• Tom Sachs x Nike: With the 15th anniversary of the first Tom Sachs’ collab with Nike coming soon, the latest offering of the General Purpose Shoe is launching. The Demerits references a nod to Sachs’ misbehaving school days of wearing soccer shoes instead of the required dress shoes. He had colored in the logo with a marker to disguise them giving another fun nod to the drawn on shoebox and handwritten like logo on the heel. It’s the first GPS made with ECCO® leather uppers instead of the knit and made with a traditional waffle sole. The sneaker drops September 30th at 10am ET on Nike Craft for $119.99.

  

  I went digging for Tom Sachs x Nike history and the first place I went was to my brother. He wore his Tom Sachs General Purpose Shoes literally every day for about 4 years. When they finally gave out he bought the exact same pair again. This shows a customer who wears the product into the ground and appreciates the art of this sneaker.

  The resale market tells the other part of this partnership. StockX’s Senior Director of Customer Community and Engagement Brendan Dunne made this great piece of content that breaks down the demand for the Mars Yard. I’m curious where the Demerits will land with both wearers, collectors, and resale.

• The Dôen x Vogue book club nightgown collab is smart but I kept having this feeling like they had done it before. Not exactly. Dôen previously collab’ed with Library Science, Kaia Gerber and Alyssa Reeder’s book club. Still fun. I like books. I like nightgowns. I like collabs.

• The handbags from The Horse popped on my radar last year when their Clementine shot to the top of the affiliate links. The bags are well-made and at an accessible price point. No gold foil logo like a lot of other similarly priced handbags have. The newest handbag is an east-west duffle silhouette, The Maggie.

• Collab coming soon, cute for the teen sleepovers and GRWM1 Roller Rabbit x Tarte on Roller Rabbit’s first beauty collab. Arriving this Thursday. Tell the teens not to snooze.

• Frances Valentine’s new Mary Tyler Moore collection launches today. I had the chance to preview and the pieces are either easy (great cigarette pants, classic knit turtlenecks) or a total statement like the red peacoat and Mary Tyler Moore’s famous pom-pom beret. “You're gonna make it after all.” Last week Frances Valentine hosted their kick off event at the SCAD Film Studios in Atlanta along with the MTM Vision Initiative. Attendees could preview the collection and see artifacts from Mary Tyler Moore’s collection. If you want to enjoy more Moore, I also recommend the Being Mary Tyler Moore documentary.

• Osea Malibu has been building out their Dream bio-retinol line. There is now a little bundle you can utilize to try the new products. Try the trio if you find lavender relaxing for sleep and/or you like to have something to remind you to unwind for bed. I’ve been keeping this serum* on my nightstand so now I have an AM moisturizer, a post-shower moisturizer*, and now a sleep-time* option.

• Westman Atelier’s holiday sets are here. The Glassy Flush has a new pH-adaptive blush and I’m really intrigued to feel the texture. I’ll report back since I sometimes find this too sticky and difficult to blend. The brushes look perfect for travel (I love a WA make-up brush) and I’m impressed with the shades in the eyeshadow palette and I usually prefer to shop my eyeshadows à la carte.

Forecasting

• Tiny animal prints: Latest case of three is a trend has me thinking that what is trending in animal prints isn’t a specific animal, but rather the scale (as in size, not lizard scales). _tiny Let’s track these animal steps:

  • Parker Thatch is the newest entrant I’m watching with their new launch this week of the fawn hair.

  • Chanel has been channeling a tiny cheetah print lately.

  • Reformation is seeing spots with dalmatians. Isabel Marant too — slingback and a cozy moccasin.

  • What is going on? A pendulum swing, or is it that after a summer of seeing polka dots everywhere the animal print du jour is smaller scale and more closely resembles the polka dots.

• The trend of opening in Aventura Mall (or the general Miami area) before hitting both NYC and L.A.? We’ve got another example with Revolve. Their only other location is at The Grove in L.A. but no outpost in NYC at this time. It makes sense for the Miami shopper, but usually NYC is the spot retailers try to mark first and early.

Dot, Bam, Margin

Mahjong went from being called out for cultural appropriation to being the hottest game and “the next pickleball” and I’m predicting a big Holiday Gift Guide item (big = $$ revenue because of the retail prices and big = popular because not everyone has a fancy set yet).

I bet you have at least 3 friends who have asked you to learn or play Mahjong with them. That is if you aren’t already playing and the one asking everyone else. The WSJ covered kids playing at sleep-away camp this summer [gift link]. In 2020/2021 some of the American brands that designed their own sets and started selling them were in the hot seat for cultural appropriation [CNN]. The chatter around that has quieted some but hasn’t gone away completely [Colorado Sun].

Behind the paywall we get into a quick bit of the history but mostly in the retail angles — the margin, the revenue opportunity, and predictions for the holiday season. I’d make a fun Bam! Crack! reference here but as I mentioned, I don’t play. Yet.

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In this send: Channel Checks including the Tom Sachs 31 Rue Cambon …

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I’m also excited to share this special campaign that I was honored to be a part of. Frances Valentine worked with some really cool women in media who were inspired by Mary Tyler Moore for their campaign with the Mary Tyler Moore Vision Foundation.

What else am I thinking about?

Thursday, Mark Zuckerberg hosted his Meta Connect in Menlo Park and wore a t-shirt that said “Building is my love language”. I typed in “Mark Zuckerberg building…” to Google Search to research the t-shirt and the first thing that popped up was this:

Plus look at the things AI can now do for us:

In this send: Skirts take over the fashion conversation, but don’t worry. I have the data and merchant insights to explain it all. Plus: A Label Check on build-your-own-outerwear brand Marfa Stance. Sneakerina, Sneex, Substack gets Goop-y, Friends & Family lore, how many skirts are we talking about, Lyst, Prada, Róhe, Dries Van Noten, self-tanner, biker style shapewear, pantyhose, Madison Ave, Mexico City, Absolutely Fabrics, Marc Metrick, Evereve, Sarah Clary, Law Roach, Spread the Jelly, Gloria Steinem’s townhouse, Argent, Gregg Renfrew, beecee, and how many skirts do you own?

New Collabs

• Miu Miu x New Balance sneakerina. A sweet little ballet sneaker.

• Merit x Erdem — this collab is hauntingly beautiful. A signature lip trio, make-up set, and soaps. The fact that Holiday is out now, in mid September, makes me think that something more could still be coming for the Holidays. I do love their lipsticks and blushes, but my new favorite is their mascara*. I consider it my everyday “mild” mascara.

New Launches

• The launches this week are out of control about the eye patch dispenser packaging in beauty. Many brands are also playing along with the virality of it all even if they aren’t launching eye patches from a grinder dispenser. They at least still promoted their eye patches on instagram. Read more here to understand what is going on.

• These Sneex up on you: Sneex boots. Does anyone wear Sneex? If so, jump in the comments to share your experience and let’s discuss.

• On the heels of launching football (soccer) On is launching Golf as a category expansion too. For(e) 2027. (These puns are fun.)

• Aviator Nation launches their NFL collection. Aviator Nation could have slipped in relevance this year as a popular Gen Z-Alpha sweats brand, especially with Free City’s momentum, but I think collabs like this and the University partnership will help make this up. [NYTimes gift link to read Rory Satran from article on Free City sweats.]

• , with Paltrow writing, is launching a Substack. Which feels so wild that the newsletter that started 18 years ago is now launching on Substack with the same type of coverage. I want to understand how these newsletters will be different, if at all. Welcome to Goop’s Substack. Interesting for retail brands, the $150 founding member rate gives you 15% off all Goop Beauty and GWYN products, free content, and access to two live Substack in platform events.

  

Friends & Family - History & PSA

Mid to late September, to get ahead of Black Friday and Holiday sales, many retailers and brands host their Friends & Family sales. Friends & Family events started as exclusive, insider events where department store employees could offer discounts to their personal networks. When I first worked at Bloomingdale’s in the Buying Office, each employee was given 40 cards. We were expected to send them to our key vendors/partners and then we could send to our actual friends and family. We would hand address each one and then put them in a box to be mailed out. In 2008, I remember sitting in a C-Suite executive’s office when she received a phone call with on-the-ground reporting that Saks Fifth Avenue was offering everyone a Friends & Family discount even if they didn’t have the coupon to scan. Immediately other department stores started honoring the same deal (then we all ran over to Saks to shop, at the time they offered a deeper Friends & Family discount and had brands we didn’t carry at Bloomingdale’s). This quiet, and only offered to customers with an actual connection to an employee event became public. It soon became one of the deepest discounts of the season. You no longer needed that special postcard with a promotional code to show you were in the inner circle.

Looking for where to shop Friends & Family this week?

• Tuckernuck — Use code Family to activate the sale. Grab a peacoat, or a shirtdress. My tip here is just beacause you click on “friends & family dresses” doesn’t mean everything is discounted. Many of the products are excluded and as I was searching Wednesday night it was a little confusing. The F&F deals are mostly on their Private Label merchandise which has a higher margin and they have more control over.

• Frame — try their high-rise classic wide leg jean.

• Bloomingdale’s — a good time to stock up on kid’s clothes (my son would wear this t-shirt), a men’s Polo Ralph Lauren sweater (that anyone can wear), Gucci sunglasses, or a pair of Mother denim. 25 percent off!

• Banana Republic — I’m very into the high profile flats, a pair of highly rated ponte pants, a pair of boots that will get you through a lot of bad weather, and crew neck sweaters.

• Plus plenty more — like Saks, Neiman Marcus, and Madewell called theirs an “Insider Event”.

This report is lightly edited and updated from reporting I did in September 2024.

Skirting The Issue

Prada’s show had skirt dominance, and it is typically a skirt heavy brand, so not surprising. As I dipped into the data I still found some interesting details and had plenty of thoughts about how this is playing out for merchants and your favorite retailers and brands right now.

Prada and skirts feel like a no-brainer because Miuccia Prada has been making the case for skirts for many many seasons. She personally wears a lot too. But if skirts haven’t flooded your algorithm this week then we have very different media diets.

Behind the paywall I have exclusive data from Lyst for Private Label on what the skirt category is already showing, how merchants are adjusting their buy, and what else we can expect from skirts going forward.

Also, a deep dive on the brand Marfa Stance. If you aren’t familiar you are going to want to read this. If you are familiar, I breakdown the trunk show strategy and how the modular outerwear brand is expanding in the U.S. with more stores and increasing their attachment rate.

Read more

Let’s check in on the YISE Beauty — Jones Road Beauty drama that feels like it became non-drama, but filled me with so many thoughts to discuss on retail, merchandising, and marketing.

In this send: Sézane appeals to their loyal shoppers. I have a few suggestions for the brand and any brand handling changes the shoppers pushback on. Plus: Ogee Lid Sculpt™, a gigantic tote, great expectations, the well priced luxury heritage cashmere scarf, Mbappé, Morgane Sézalory, Wide Awake, Molly Sims, Bobbi Brown, Jones Road Beauty, eye patch dispenser, Love Shack Fancy, Mission Vintage, Schostal, and a top notch post on a fashion favorite color — Yves Klein Blue (thanks ).

Fresh Receipts

• Ogee launched a new Lid Sculpt™ liquid eyeshadow*. They launched with 10 shades. The smart ecommerce strategy is if you purchase 2 or more shades you get their new eyeshadow blender brush free. Drives you to upgrade to two shades and you are more likely to find one you love that way. They offered me some to test so I’m trying out this* one and my daughter picked this shade*. I’ll report back soon.

• Dagne Dover, a handbag line known for structured organization style bags like this, launches their new lightweight collection on Wednesday. Super Soft, their new line, is filled with oversized, collapsible, lightweight bags. The hero item is a 82.6-liter, 1.2-pound Gigantic Tote. If you are schlepping a lot of stuff, having a lighter bag can help.

• Alo launched their own version of shearling (Ugg style) boots and slip-on.

• Dôen x Trove on a beautiful jewelry storage collab. I notice that often people are asking where to find good jewelry storage so even though Dôen isn’t known for a jewelry collection, I like that they are offering this type of product with their aesthetic. Now I’m ready for Dôen to launch a vintage jewelry collection or vintage inspired jewelry collection. The large jewelry box already sold out. (Fun fact, Jen Rubio — Away co-Founder and ex-CEO — is the majority investor in Trove.)

  • I got this jewelry box as a gift a few years ago and I love it. Highly recommend.

  • My mom calls large jewelry boxes “great expectations” and I’m obsessed with that.

• Cute little evening clutch from Hunting Season.

• If you want the Sézane x New Balance collab sneakers you have to move fast. They sell out quickly.

• I’ll keep saying it each time I see Johnstons of Elgin, but as a former cold weather accessories buyer, this is the heritage brand of scarves for this year. I love this oversized tartan stole. While the price might seem like more of a sticker shock, compared to this other heritage brand scarf (which is often a huge holiday gift item) the Johnstons of Elgin scarf might be more expensive upfront but it is roughly $0.073 per centimeter squared whereas the other option is $0.125 per centimeter squared and significantly smaller. Both are in cashmere. Wrap yourself in luxury!

• The Great x Stetson on their second collab. Check out the new delivery.

• Are we excited to see Mbappé at On launching Football (aka soccer)? I am. I like to see competition and seeing how this plays out. Nike is on notice yet again. How might this play out? On launches a cool boot (aka cleat) and then Nike “rhymes with” and launches their version and does well because they have the scale and the marketing power. The rhymes with detail is what I often talk to retail analyst Simeon Siegel about.

• While you wait for the new PS1 Walker to be released you can borrow a PS11 or search for a vintage PS1. Did anyone hang on to their original PS1?

• Happy Donni Fall III drop day. You can shop the collection here.

Sézane Wants You To Love Them

Friday afternoon a Sézane marketing email arrived in my inbox. I found it really interesting that the brand had heard enough feedback and knew that there was chatter on social and articles about the brand’s re-brand. It is always a gamble when a brand chooses to alert customer’s to a re-brand. The ones that are loyal to the brand don’t want to see any changes. They love the brand and have stuck with it. People don’t always do well with change. While reading the email I had a few questions as brands don’t always respond to shopper pushback. And of course, in this format Sézane and founder Morgane Sézalory cherry pick what they addressed. So I read the email like a merchant — what they answered, how, and what they left out. (I sent Sézane my questions and haven’t heard back. I’ll update if they do.)

Behind the paywall you’ll find my thoughts on what is going on at Sézane right now and follow-up to the YISE Beauty vs Jones Road Beauty Wide Awake controversy. I hope you’ll upgrade and join in on the discussion.

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It’s a busy weekend with my son’s soccer tournament, but at least it is in Sonoma — not a bad place to spend time this weekend. I also have flag football for my daughter, and a host of other family obligations.

I’m paywalling most of this as a thank you to my paid readers and to touch on retail, fashion, and beauty controversies happening right this minute. These are the topics I’d want to discuss at a cocktail party with all of you. Or as we sip a crispy Diet Coke.

In this send: took to Instagram on Saturday to share a huge disappointment for her and her YISE Beauty brand — another female founder-led brand launched a product with the same name of one of her popular products. This made me WIDE AWAKE with lots of thoughts. Plus: Sézane, Steven Kolb, Rachel Zoe, Diarrha N’Diaye, Rea Ann Silva, Beauty Blender, YSE, YISE, baggage, depuff, cultural shifts, my favorite eye patches, and deep thoughts.

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New Collabs

• cooked up something new with Staub. A dutch oven tote is brilliant for pot lucks and bringing a friend a tasty soup. If you are marketing a cookbook this would be brilliant in the PR box.

• Gap x A.P.C. — two heritage brands coming together with an American style sensibility and a Parisian one. I’m excited for this. In 2016 A.P.C. did a collab with Outdoor Voices and I still wear the leggings. I found a pair on Poshmark. Gap’s collaboration launches Friday 9/18 and cardmembers get first access. Smart to ask shoppers to sign up to get access because I think there is a large audience for this. Often when this happens the offering sells out before it opens to the broader audience. Good luck!

• Damson Madder x Clarks Originals™ launching Thursday 9/17. I think of Clarks as a very functional shoe, and Damson Madder does solid outerwear, so I’m into this collab as it makes sense. Both are British brands.

• Nike x Jacquemus new moon shoe color-way coming.

• Heirlome x Margaux. More on that below.

• L’eggs x Rachel Antonoff. This is a fun one, Days of the Week sock pack. I love how L’eggs has reinvented beyond the (still cool, but not so relevant) plastic egg pantyhose brand.

• Levi’s x Sacai on Instagram as coming soon. I’m excited to see how Sacai interprets with the heritage denim brand.

• Eckhaus Latta x J.Crew went live and here are a few things worth noting:

  • I feel like they bought into this 27 piece collection because it didn’t sell out immediately.

  • Why do I think they bought into it versus people just not interested? I saw creators/influencers noting that they could see it was selling well (yeah for the data). So if they see it is selling from the links, that’s great. Sure, you can’t tell what shoppers are buying, so they could just be buying other items at J.Crew, but I think this is a good indicator of the new launch but not 100 percent accurate. Some Reddit commentary too.

  • The sizing was interesting to see on the PDP1 how they have the overlap of Men’s and Women’s. This collection was really designed to be universal. I feel like this is more interesting than doing a separate men’s and women’s SKU2 and having to manage the inventory on the back-end and I like that everyone can shop from the same spot. I’m sure it gave a twist to writing the buy and selecting sizes and either they had a special merchant covering as a project or the men’s and women’s teams worked together closely on this.

  • Also worth noting, by doing this, and having a collection available in larger sizes, the larger sizes sell out fast. Planners please note for future buys!

    

• I’ve also seen comments that Banana Republic x La Ligne is selling. (Hi here and here.) Thanks for the insights.

• Looking like a future collab will be launching — Celisse (’s nail care brand) worked with Sandy Liang. Check out the pale blue in slide 4.

New Launches

• Guest in Residence, the brand that Gigi Hadid is the Creative Director for, went live with their denim on Tuesday 9/15. In the first day almost all styles completely sold out. If you were looking to try but haven’t purchased yet I would look for returns that could happen in a week or so when shoppers who bought multiple pairs ultimately return. Especially when trying a new brand and new category shoppers will need to explore multiple sizes in denim. Benjamin Talley Smith worked with the team to design and develop the denim assortment so you know it will be great. Looks like the Weekender and Everyday styles were the strongest (but makes sense — the Everyday only came in 3 colors).

• Rixo has been known as a go-to for silk-y, slightly bohemian, dresses and they are pushing into a full ready-to-wear line with a great emphasis on outerwear, knitwear, pants, tops etc. It makes sense to expand their offering beyond what is mostly seen as an “occasion-wear ” brand. The brand shared that they received close to 1,000 sign-ups to be notified about their outerwear. Some of the collection is live now with more coming later this fall. If you are a coat person I highly recommend checking those out — this is where the brand does really well in the execution of something interesting and different than the rest of the marketplace. I heard from a source that this jacket that already existed in the brand became so viral that it made sense to expand. Plus the brand always styled the pieces with vintage items that shoppers were already asking about. Another case of listen to your customers for what else they are looking for.

• Reformation did a college launch with Olivia Jade and made references to the whole Operation Varsity Blues scandal. I’ve heard of a little backlash, but I liked this. The comments on the Instagram post are lighthearted and here for the rage bait-y bits. There is a give back component and it brought back a scandal from a few years ago, versus something fresh and still part of the conversation. Especially with her mother Lori Loughlin recently joining Instagram. Also, one of the sweatshirts says “Sexy Math” which is 10000 percent better than the time that Mattel did a Teen Talk Barbie that said “Math class is tough”. Private Label, and merchants everywhere, love sexy math.

• Vera Bradley’s new launch — The Remix Collection — feels like a full circle moment. So if you didn’t get your hands on this designer tote, are you shopping Vera Bradley?

• If cloth bags, especially customized, are your thing, perhaps you are shopping Stoney Clover Lane’s new launch. With the personalization they give a bit of Call It By Your Name.

• New Ben Christensen campaign launched for Freda Salvador during NYFW. My favorites from the collection are the tall western boot, this suede fringed shirt, and these suede fringed loafers that remind me of moccasins.

Fresh Receipts

• Both are amazing! But do you go for the Dries Van Noten belt or bag? Both??

• Emme Parsons new shoes: I’m seeing a lot of “sock” boots this fall. These have a western cut. We are also seeing more low profile shoes that aren’t sneakers or loafers. But a good alternative. And here is a great soft, loafer mule.

• Jamie Haller’s Trap (kitten heel) pump in black patent! A kitty point in zebra, and an incredibly low shaft sock boot.

• Staud’s fancy pants.

• Auralee’s quarter zip in red is A+.

Heirlome — Finding Her Footing

I was thrilled this week when I saw that Margaux collabed with Heirlome and designer Stephanie Suberville for her first runway show, the Spring/Summer 2027 collection. This was a debut runway moment for Suberville and the two brands share a connection with another brand, Argent, so it was fun to see this all come together. And while many might think of Margaux as a DTC brand, a lot of the steps they take are more of a slow and considered fashion label. Heirlome was a 2025 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund runner-up and here’s what’s been happening behind the scenes.

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“September is the January of fashion. This is when I change. This is when I, you know, try to get back on those high heels, because that's the look.” — Candy Pratts Price

I will not be in high heels, I’m still wearing the flat-est of flats*. But September really is so exciting in fashion and retail.

In this send: Channel Checks from the West Village to the Upper East Side. Plus after Macy’s quarterly earnings last week I check in on Bloomingdale’s and the department store landscape. Plus: Leset, TWP x Commbi, Negative, spaghetti handbag, a fold-up Prada handbag, the jacket the UES seems to be getting rid of, is hiring a personal shopper, Steven Kolb, remembering the original “naked dress” designer, and goodbye NYFW and cheerio to LFW.

Fresh Receipts:

Sole Searching

• Leset launched a shoe assortment!: The shoes have a point of view and that makes me very excited when I see a brand expand into a new category. I don’t want to see styles that already exist, show me your brand and how it is different. For Leset I’m seeing relaxed, comfort, thoughtful use of color, and something interesting — like the cutouts on the mary jane or a printed slipper. Check out the mary jane, a slipper, a sock boot, and a relaxed slip-on — the Leset take on a sneaker.

• TWP Steps Forward: After wondering when TWP would be launching shoes, tagged me in a shot with her perfectly casual-yet-elevated outdoor-friendly house shoes. These are like a fancy Birkenstock Boston. TWP x Commbi that was debuted backstage during NYFW. A pony hair calf clog that comes in Rosen (a deep green) and Blonde (a light tan shade). These shoes are available both in store and online.

• Repetto x Yohji Yamamoto: Repetto’s Bolchoï, a ballet flat, is re-imagined into a loafer by Yohji Yamamoto. This is their third collaboration together, the first one dating back to 2002. You’ll see this ballet loafer on Yamamoto’s runway during Paris Fashion Week. It is interesting to see it released prior to the runway show.

And Everything Else Fresh

• Yes, new Phoebe Philo is in and looks good. Like really, really good.

• Don’t forget, the Lingua Franca preorder for Spring 2027 are only open for a few more days and using code FITZ20 you will receive an additional 20 percent off your preorder. Why are preorders helpful for retailers? Get an early indication of sales to buy into for inventory, sweaters are hand-knit in Peru making it hard to reorder in-season, a very very small way to fund the order — generally not enough to make an impact but at least it is something, a great marketing opportunity especially for your most loyal shoppers. All orders will ship in February 2027.

• Negative’s Sports Capsule: Negative is known for the comfy loungewear (this material practically has a cult following) and underwear, so it makes sense for the brand to expand into the performance category. The lines on the tops/sports bras look like you would expect from Negative’s clean and simple bras.

• J.Crew x Eckhaus Latta is live.

• I’m actually surprised I haven’t seen more red denim this fall. But Agolde has these red corduroy pants and they look fantastic.

• Looking for a new handbag? Fresh Receipts worth checking out:

  • Valesque’s two new shades in the spaghetti handbag. This handbag is my absolute favorite for everyday use. It is the easiest handbag ever and has a zip closure. I love the skinny leather straps. I already own two so I can’t justify another at the moment, but at $230 they are easy to collect. My favorite new color is this blue and I’ll keep thinking about it but I think I’m waiting for a red in this style to be my third. Haven’t seen/heard of it yet but I’m holding out hope.

  • Kallmeyer’s new “Magazine” handbag, named after Magazine Street in New Orleans, debuted on the S/S 2027 runway and is already available online and in stores. It currently comes in two patent finishes — a black and a burgundy. Here is why I think it is interesting and will do well at retail: the slightly east-west shape still holds enough to be used everyday, no extreme logos but still easily identifiable, the price is sharp for a designer handbag at $1,590, and Kallmeyer’s show received rave reviews which will put the handbag front and center and in more social feeds. The handbag was cleverly seeded to some key attendees at the show.

  • Have you seen these fold-up Prada nylon and leather bags? Really fun and a great gift idea if you are looking for the holidays already. Available to shop now here.

Field Notes: Channel Checks from NYC

• I visited the new Still Here location in the West Village. The brand does an excellent job with their retail storefronts. The spaces are selling advanced contemporary denim and basics but the spaces feel like higher-end retail and part home store. I tried on the Tate and really like them. When I’m ready for my next pair of denim this is a very strong contender. I also liked the Everyday (check out that purple shade!) and Life styles but would need to size down for those unless you want to wear super loose. (Note, I have a hard time purchasing for myself when I’m in channel check mode.)

• Leset’s sales associates at their West Village location were fantastic. For a bit I just observed a sales associate patiently help a customer try on this t-shirt and these wide leg pants to wear as her own le set. I hope the customer bought because she looked great. I wanted to try on this skirt, but they have been sold out. I need to just order online next time they have in stock.

• Dôen in the West Village was super busy late morning/early afternoon in the middle of the week. I really appreciate the merchandising here. It isn’t by category, all denim together, all dresses together, by print. It is more of a lifestyle mix-in. So one or two denim styles hang next to silk dresses. I saw the new Bacall Denim Shirt and love the weight of it, a bit heavier. Perfect as an outer layer and can be worn as a light jacket.

• J.Crew had their new product in and I observed a shopper very excited with the new fall product. She didn’t leave with anything new, was returning an item, but mentioned she was tempted by the new. With J.Crew we’ve been trained to wait until items go on sale to purchase.

• At The RealReal on the Upper East Side I saw 5 of these jackets hanging on a rack. Two in light grey/green, pink, orange, and black. Curious if the UES woman is consigning this jacket to make room for her new Chanel jackets or just ready to move on to new Celine. Always interesting to see what clients are ready to consign and when you see multiples of a single style in one (small) location it really stands out.

• Dries Van Noten in Soho had plenty of stock, loved all the special handbags (this was my favorite, but I like this one too) and plenty of shoppers were in the store. When I stopped by the Bergdorf Goodman Dries Van Noten space they noted that they hadn’t received their pre-fall delivery yet and were expecting it any day. Bloomingdale’s had their new delivery in but it felt like a small space, especially after I visited the Soho store.

• Now that the Vivrelle x Renggli pop-up has completed (see my original reporting on the event), let’s check-in on the stats. It all started with a Wednesday evening launch party with :

  • I was told a few thousand attendees popped in over the launch party and through shopping days that ended 9/13/26.

  • Most popular brands: Chanel, Fendi, and Balenciaga. Pieces from every brand at the pop-up were borrowed or purchased according to a source.

  • A healthy mix of new clients and existing.

  • Since this was Renggli’s first IRL storefront it gave shoppers the opportunity to try on and experience before buying — removing the friction.

Checking In To Bloomingdale’s

Bloomingdale’s just posted the brand’s best second quarter results in the 154 year history. Comp store sales rose 11.3 percent versus last year and it was the second straight quarter of double digit growth. Macy’s released their second quarter earnings last week. I was in Bloomingdale’s 59th Street last week and saw and experienced some of what is working right now. My favorite sign was walking on the 4th floor and seeing a group of women relaxed in the lounge outside of the new dressing rooms. Catching up mid-shopping in the middle of the weekday. Treating the store like a third space, a place to hangout. The brands have also been upgraded — Phoebe Philo, Acne, Jacquemus, Dries Van Noten, Ossou, TWP and new contemporary brands like Leset and Parke. This gives us another chance to check in on the department store ecosystem which currently has a really interesting mix between Nordstrom going private and Saks Global’s bankruptcy and restructuring around Exemplar Luxury Group.

Behind the paywall: a deeper look at Bloomingdale’s performance and my questions for the retailer. Plus a deeper look at ShopMy’s disruptor status and the possible impact to Influencers and Creators that use the platform and CFDA President Steven Kolb thoughts.

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I didn’t realize this was still sitting in my drafts! I wanted to make sure it has a proper spot in the feed. Recently and I had a conversation about Vogue World coming to San Francisco in 2027. Retail brands based in the Bay Area, fashion, style, and how technology and tech advertising fits into all of it. If you didn’t listen live I hope you check it out and let us know what you think.

And here’s two questions for you. Let’s discuss in the comments:

• Which brands/events do you predict will partner with Vogue World SF, vs. which ones you want to see there?

• Where do you like to shop in SF? What are some retail gems we missed?

Show Notes:

0:44 — Who we are (two Bay Areans who work in fashion media)

7:49 — What is Vogue World?

13:55 — Reaction to SF as the 2027 location; “Is Vogue rage-baiting us?”

16:04 — How growing up in the Bay influenced my style

20:04 — Nasty Gal as a 2000s example of fashion-meets-tech

23:30 — SF’s retail legacy : Levi’s, GAP, Macy’s West, Williams-Sonoma

31:35 — UC Berkeley and students shape the thrifting scene

34:58 — Retail clusters: Fillmore Street, Hayes Valley AKA DTC Valley, Downtown, Jackson Square, Walnut Creek mall, Marin Country Mart, Stanford Shopping Center

43:57 — Independent stores/designers: Sherri McMullen, Evan Kinori, M.A.C., Two Two, Hero Shop, Kamperett, Standard & Strange

50:08 — How we think brands will show up at Vogue World SF…the Meta of it all

1:00:52 — Substack HQ is in SF and there’s a small group of fashion voices based here: Blackbird Spyplane, Derek Guy.

1:05:19 — How secondhand platforms based in the Bay might engage (eBay, TRR, Poshmark, ThredUp)

1:09:27 — Fun lightning round questions to wrap it up!

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Update: With NYFW I’ll be running around NYC more this week — meetings, Channel Checks, observing what is going on in retail and ready to report back here! Private Label send timing, days, and length might vary.

Fresh Receipts

• Hitting the Target in Beauty: Target Beauty Studio is launching September 10th. Remember, there was a major deal between Target and Ulta for shop-in-shops. When that didn’t work out, one reason being cannibalizing Ulta’s own stores, Target came back with this expanded Target Beauty Studio. Brands you will find in the Studio space: Tula, Briogeo, Sunday Riley, Manucurist, Mixik Skin (my daughter loves these), StriVectin, Supergoop! (my forever favorite and consistent repurchase), and First Aid Beauty. Buff Beauty, Katia Beauchamp’s new “skincare for nails” brand will be launching at Target too.

• Uniqlo U’s new coated cotton shoulder bag is like the designers Christophe Lemaire and Sarah-Linh Tran were inspired by both their Lemaire Croissant Bag and the famous (and a personal favorite) Uniqlo mini-round bag. It’s a bit bigger so could be a fantastic travel option.

• On Wednesday Harlems Fashion Row x American Girl Brand collab launches. The preview will be live Tuesday (today).

• I’m always curious about new-to-me brands on my algorithm. I saw an Instagram ad for these printed easy pants with a presale shipping this week. Have you tried the brand Cadets? Their tagline is “for the Moms, Tomboys, Boys & Men too”.

• Jacques Marie Mage sunglasses deserve their own accessory.

Travel Notes

My flight plan (aka, what I plan to wear on a flight) is pretty much always the same. I only like to use carry-on. I rarely check a bag because I prioritize being neurotic/keeping my stuff/not waiting for a bag, over traveling with extra stuff. Also, since I pretty much have a uniform1 I don’t need to bring a ton of extra shoes etc. Here is the plan for my red eye:

• High Sport Pants (navy, regular length) — I prefer the short length, but for the flight the regular length are still fine for me (I’m 5 ft 2 inches) and the longer length keeps me more covered for the flight. If you found the navy surprising for me, yes, me too. I’m packing the black short length I have to wear on the trip.

• Compression socks. I have no clue if these work, but I don’t want to take chances. Plus they are cozy for an overnight flight and keep me warm. I’m always freezing on a flight.

• Top layers — I want lots of layers on a flight. I start with a t-shirt, I’ve been loving the Literary Sport Cardigan and will wear again for workouts during my stay. I sometimes opt for a La Ligne sweater or a High Sport sweater instead.

• Blazer — I love wearing my blazer on the plane because it means I don’t have to pack it and gives me extra pockets. This one* from Argent is perfect and has a pocket for everything from my AirPods case to my lip balm. For travel this time of year this will be my only jacket. Whew.

• Wearing my bulkiest shoes, for this trip it is my sneakers.

• Plane accessories — my travel scarf (doubles as my plane blanket). During the warmer months I use this one instead. I’ve had each of these scarves for about 15 years, perhaps I should call them my security scarves. This is a bit of an uncommon accessory, but I do like it for the plane: a necklace that my AirPods pop into** so if I take them out on the plane I don’t lose them.

• For a red-eye I find this posture bra* so much more comfortable than an underwire and it is the sports bra I’ll use on the trip. It’s all about efficiency when packing in a carry-on.

• My handbags I pack matryoshka/Russian doll style to get four size options:

  • This bag is best for packing for evening — packs completely flat or doubles as another pouch for travel

  • Then this incredibly light shoulder bag (perfect for channel checks) fits inside of my…

  • Work bag — filled with my computer and chargers

  • Inside of my larger, and expandable, travel tote. Zipped up for the trip there. We shall see if I find anything worth unzipping and expanding for the trip home.

Second Serve, Nike

Elliott Hill is approaching the start of his second year as CEO at Nike, and the headlines are asking how long should a CEO get to turnaround a brand? See this article from Fortune. I started thinking about another brand we’ve witnessed with a major retail turnaround that took three years to rev-up. It took CEO Fran Horowitz three years to turn Abercrombie around. It took longer for the stock to bounce back. Nike seems to be planning for a similar trajectory.

Over the weekend, Naomi Osaka walked onto the U.S. Open court in a look stylist Law Roach engineered. In Vanessa Friedman’s NYTimes article (gift link) Osaka is referred to as “the fashion Queen of the tennis court”. Roach connected Monse and Nike to build a bespoke piece around Nike's Sportswear Studio Fleece. The same fleece Nike used weeks earlier at sorority rush activations at Alabama and Arizona State customizing and giving away. All of it is happening against the backdrop of Nike being removed from the S&P 100 for the first time in 18 years.

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In this send: Updates on the canceled Galliano exhibit, Paige Paul is launching sunglasses, Sézane, and Old Navy co…

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New Collabs

• Lamine Yamal, who helped Spain clench the World Cup trophy, launches his first collaboration with American Eagle today. Prices range from $15.95-$139.95. Yamal was inspired by his own European street style preferences and merged this with American Eagle’s denim heritage. More off the field inspiration versus a soccer/football kit. Think baggy denim, cargos, and oversized pieces. This project has been in the works since pre-World Cup.

• Stoney Clover Lane x Hulken I thought there would be some personalization with the patches — and really driving up the retails of the bags — but it seems to be mostly with bag charms and color associations.

• Madhappy x Puma — while I like these low profile sneakers, the teens are very into fold-over pants (think Hard Tail and So Low) at the moment.

• Thomas Mason heritage fabrics just launched a collab with Alex Mill. Worth noting, I remembered that J.Crew has worked with Thomas Mason too. Alex Mill’s are brighter and have more of a pop, whereas J.Crew’s are more classic and buttoned-up. Alex Mill is priced at $225 versus J.Crew’s at $198. Let’s keep spiraling 🌀 because Brooks Brother’s also has a partnership with Thomas Mason. Brooks Brother’s are $228 (so basically Alex Mill likes retails ending in 5’s and Brooks Brother’s in 8’s). But they do have a bunch marked down to $99.99 and a classic solid style at $198.

New Launches

• Phillip Lim launched a new brand, Play Love Win, with a variety of dress shirts for men and women. Oh my gosh, this cake! Lim also discussed it on the Vogue Run-Through podcast.

• Denim Launches Continue:

  • Daily Drills — mostly known for sweatshirts and athleisure, the brand is expanding with denim. Daily Drills is a very Gen Z-Alpha brand. Their denim launch is another example (like La Ligne, Guest in Residence) expanding into denim because it aligns with styling opportunities and makes more sense to have their own brand. The customer is already shopping for this category elsewhere, bring it in to the brand. Increases the average order volume.

  • New Denim at Dôen. These styles are vintage inspired and Dôen’s own description of “special capsule collection” leads me to believe you should grab them when you can. There will be five denim fits and a denim shirt. Update post publishing: This is another Benjamin Talley Smith project. Smith worked with Dôen on the development of these styles.

  • Evereve — the multi-brand retailer launched their “Jeans that make me feel _______” campaign. You can shop by style (straight, wide leg, relaxed, bootcut, and petite) or by brand featured. The style guide also includes the pieces to pair back to each silhouette taking the guess work out of what shoes to wear with each. Evereve is known as the spot to help you figure out what to wear so this brings their in-person styling to online shopping and during my research shoppers told me it feels less overwhelming to have a tighter selection when shopping in the Evereve stores versus larger department stores. These wide leg jeans were recently recommended to Private Label by Director of Buying Katheryn LaFin-Petersen. I’ve also been tracking interesting washes and colors and this cobalt pair from Mother is the direction that preppy has been going in. It feels aligned with the runway trends. And LaFin-Petersen also highlighted to me the the vintage washes as a key trend for Evereve this fall.

• From denim you wear to denim you carry: Gap’s handbag collection with Reed Krakoff at the helm is launching September 10th. I’ll do a more in depth report when I’ve seen in person. My initial thoughts are:

  • I love the mention in the NYTimes that the fleece tote brings to mind the Trader Joe’s tote or my favorite Uniqlo sling bag. If the tote or other bags can take off like either of those examples that would be a huge win for Gap and Krakoff.

  • I have less interest in a $498 denim and leather tote that also looks super heavy. It also reminds me of this Tibi x LL Bean tote with the belt. The price point doesn’t align with the Gap’s clothing retails. But just like I explained in the recent Style Out — this is the Editorial item. Designed to gain interest, get coverage, and not drive revenue. So sure, have fun with that one but show me the money. (Yes, I’m a very focused merchant with my eye on the P&L.)

• La Bonne Brosse, the Instagram friendly and very pretty designed hairbrushes from France, launched a body brush.

• Vogue launched a Beauty Board and I’m so glad that brought this to my attention in her As Seen On reporting. I looked at the first post from Vogue’s Beauty Board on Exosomes and then started googling different terms in a new search. What will really drive this home for Vogue, and could be a revenue benefit in the long-term, is if they can get ahead of enough trends so that when you are searching because of strong SEO Vogue’s articles come up first and then hopefully you will purchase via their links. A lot of DTC brands do the opposite of this — start out with products and then build out the blog post to drive traffic. I’ve always thought that Soft Services did a good job with this for their Mass Index blog.

The Dries Effect

I wear (mostly) all black. The only pattern I believe in (for me personally) is a stripe. So for me to be pulled toward a multi-print scarf print skirt (and a mini) is pretty noticeable. And not just one, it feels like it should be a collectable. This sample size of one sent me down a spiral of data research to figure out what exactly is the current pull of Dries Van Noten, scarf dressing (there are great bags too) and if this is a real “thing” or just me curious about an item not currently in my closet1.

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