Hi — I spent Monday morning on Fillmore Street for a quick visit in San Francisco, and Sunday afternoon on the sidelines watching a dad in a Jacquemus t-shirt cheering for the girls flag football team. I’m always observing when fashion & retail are in the mix. Thank you and hello to the new Private Label subscribers. For a bit more about what to expect here and who I am, check this out. And if you work in retail here is a template to get this informative newsletter expensed. Try it and upgrade for an annual subscription.
PSA: I’m doing a Substack Live with Viv Chen who writes the incredible The Molehill — her chat is one of my favorites for vintage finds and local Bay Area suggestions. We will be discussing all things San Francisco style, Vogue World San Francisco, Bay Area retail and fashion. If you have any specific topics and questions you can comment, DM me, or email sarah@privatelabel.ltd See you Thursday at 8:30pm ET/5:30pm PT.
The Rundown
Fresh Receipts: the latest knock off and tiny rollneck pros and cons
Forecasting: my 🔮 on the winter scarf pick and fandoms
Field Notes: Sézane: Contrôle en magasin. aka a french Channel Check
In My Feed: reading the After School bts hauls and more random bits I loved
In this send: I visited a Sézane to see the rebrand in person. I’m sure the rollout will take some time but I have initial thoughts to discuss. Plus: the knock-off shoe king, Beckett, tiny rollnecks, Emma Chamberlin, Flabelus, the perfect air travel companion, basic (in a good way) scarves, Will forever, Alexandar Julien and the Hornets, and I’ll be in NYC in 2 weeks! What stores should I make sure to visit?
Fresh Receipts
Spotted at Nordstrom: I shared an Instagram story of these shoes from a Nordstrom Channel Check (make sure you are following me there too) and I got dozens of DMs. People are not thrilled about the knock-off shoe king. Interesting that this shoe is not on the Nordstrom website (at the time of writing on Monday) but is in store and the Isabel Marant Bekett is on Nordstrom website.
Guess the designer of this shoe…snaps from a Channel Check at Nordstrom I shared on Instagram stories. tiny Thoughts on The Rollneck™: J.Crew made a splash with their tiny Rollneck™ with Emma Chamberlin. I have a few thoughts on this one. I can do a pro and a con and it all rolls back to their financial concerns.
Pro: Emma Chamberlin is a great partner for this. This tease over the weekend with the shrink to wash was really cheeky. On Monday Chamberlin’s post on her own Instagram handle received over 250K likes. J.Crew’s got just over 20K likes (it wasn’t done as a collab post). Will get the attention of Gen Z and younger millennials in her demographic. Pairs well with the oversized and wide leg jeans. And a fun companion for their recent denim launch. Keeps the traditional Rollneck™ in the conversation and updating it. This launch is getting attention and it is a smart pairing with Chamberlin.
BUT…Con: I keep wanting J.Crew to spend their money only in marketing that will push the bottom line. Sure, to get big rewards you have to take big risks, but this doesn’t feel like the right risk. This doesn’t feel like a million dollar revenue idea and then need a lot of those. I asked teens if they would wear this look and was told they didn’t like the neck or the fit. Right now teens are wearing cardigans open like this or the super baggy sweatshirt. For this sweatshirt the larger sizes sold out first AND the S/M fits super oversized as it is. So if this sized sweater isn’t what the teens want, and I don’t see elder millennials, Gen X, or baby boomers gravitating towards this…what generation is J.Crew designing this for? See the comments on this J.Crew post.
Tell me in the comments, where do you land on the tiny Rollneck™?
I really enjoyed Hillary Kerr’s recent Second Life podcast episode with Flabelus founder Beatriz de los Mozos. These studded velvet mary janes are my kind of shoe — a black ballet flat with a stud.
Low Profile Spotted: I popped into the Fillmore Margaux for Channel Checks and a few shoes caught my eye. This pointed zebra ballet flat, the softest structured loafer and then I saw online the new derby — check out the chart on low profile shoes as well as more details from footwear designer jessica taft langdon. PS Another Margaux location is opening at the Marin Country Mart very soon!
The other low profile trend: Ready or not, sneakerinas are here. And this pair made it into Casey Lewis’s big back-to-school reporting.
Merit (a brand that has a Substack Notes by MERIT, and recently posted an interview from their CMO Aila Morin with Rachel Karten ) has always done “merch” a little different. They had the Brooks Brothers button-up and collabs with various fashion brands for their make-up pouch GWPs1 like with Proenza Schouler and Tove. Today they are launching a small collab with the performance wear brand Live The Process.
Early Fall Reads: I asked a source at TWP what their early fall reads were, and even though it is still warm out shoppers are buying this leather top and this blazer. I love the details on the blazer — it gives you a reason to shop a classic item again.
Another new, sharp blazer?: This one from Argent now is available in black. The Argent blazers are built for multi-tasking. My tip is that a blazer like this is the perfect air travel companion. You wear it on the plane and have a zillion pockets that are hidden and make storing your phone and AirPods (plus a lip gloss*) super easy. Between the colder plane air and an easy way to pack an extra topper, you are all set.
Forecasting
Predicting The Winter Scarf: I expect these cold weather scarves to be the ones everyone is wearing this fall/winter. Johnstons of Elgin was founded in 1797 and is still Scottish made. They’ve been weaving cashmere since 1851 and this heritage brand has a Royal Warrant.
The hero styles is this fringe, also in a plaid.
I see the triangle scarf continuing this winter and while there are plenty of versions, this will be considered the classic/basic2.
Another thought re: teal: I keep thinking about how we got to this specific teal moment. laura reilly covered in Magasin how the “Jacquemus drops are only getting better” and I clicked her link and agreed. Then this weekend, at my daughter's flag football game, I spotted a dad on the sidelines in a Jacquemus t-shirt (okay, keep spiraling 🌀 with me here) — followed by these new clutches as new deliveries: red and teal. Then this image from way back in Fall 2024 was top of mind. Is Jacquemus’s color palette why we love teal and keep seeing it everywhere?
Forecasting Fandoms: We’ve seen all the brands partnering with either schools (hey Parke x ‘47 - it launches today!) or the NFL, thanks to a big kick off with Offseason when the brand launched. Now Pink x NFL. I would have liked to have seen VS x NFL and Pink x Universities and Colleges. Getting into fandoms is smart for the brands and Sororities x Roller Rabbit was another new launch this week. Pink has landing page in the navigation for Back to Campus that includes Sorority Rush Fits and Game Day. The new Abercrombie x NFL collection launched this week too.
Sézane Rebrand — Field Notes
On August 23rd Sézane’s new products dropped online. I immediately saw shoppers commenting about snatching up this new canvas tote at $100 (yes, I’ve added to the canvas bag tracker) and this leather jacket priced at $680 was another hit that quickly sold out online in the chocolate. So I was eager to visit the store and see for myself. Monday morning I visited the San Francisco Fillmore location to check out the new inventory and see the rebrand. I left a little more confused than reassured.
This feeling of being unsettled came from the quality of the products. I know that some shoppers have mentioned this in the social commentary online, but experiencing it in person, as part of a rebrand where you’d expect their best foot forward, was still jarring. More on that below with images.
