The Debrief

Hello Lauren Sherman here, we are interrupting our regularly scheduled programming today to share some news. After ten years of writing for BoF I am moving on to pursue some new projects and that means, sadly, that I no longer be hosting the debrief. It's been an absolute pleasure recording this podcast every week.I want to thank you, to the tens of thousands of listeners who have tuned in each week this past year. I hope we entertained you and that you learn just a little bit more about this crazy industry that we all love. I have a feeling we'll meet again.Stay tuned, we will be back! Subscribe for agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice, delivered straight to your inbox.

Occasionwear’s late-pandemic comeback may have felt like a reactionary fluke, but retailers and designers are betting it’s more than a trend. Background: Post-pandemic, occasionwear has been booming. During the second half of 2022 US and UK retailers introduced nearly twice as many dresses embellished with sequins, beads and jewels compared to 2019, according to retail intelligence firm Edited,. Over the same period, sequined dresses sold out 52 percent more compared to 2019, while high-heel shoes sold out 121 percent more. Retailers and designers don’t think the trend will slow any time soon as bold looks continue to flood runways and shop floors.“It's natural that now that the world is even more open compared to last year when we had just gotten vaccinated, that there's this desire for a little bit of escapism,” said Cathaleen Chen, BoF retail correspondent.  Key Insights: Outside of work-from-home and sweatpants, there’s a growing appetite for loud, statement pieces that go beyond old occasionwear staples like sequins and bold colours, and expand into split-hem pants, corset tops and velvet shoes. Much about dressing up has changed too. Consumers are looking for versatility now more than ever, and demanding comfort out of occasionwear — opting for kitten heels rather than stilettos, and slip dresses rather than form fitting looks. Though some of the uptick can be chalked up to a pandemic hangover, and some styles will stay while others fade away, the statement dressing category will remain strong through 2023. Still, cycles of consumption and consumer sentiment remain unwieldy amid wider economic uncertainty.Further Reading: Hyper Growth Is Over for Sneakers. What’s Next?Why Sequins and Platform Heels Are Here to StayJoin BoF Professional today with our exclusive podcast listener discount of 25% off an annual membership, follow the link here and enter the coupon code ‘debrief’ at checkout.Want more from The Business of Fashion? Subscribe to our daily newsletter here.Follow The Debrief wherever you listen to podcasts.

A new BoF Insights report tracks the evolution of the fast-growing high-end footwear market — and why luxury shoppers are willing to spend more than ever on the perfect shoe. Background: Luxury footwear is booming as consumers opt to spend more than ever on shoes with soaring prices. The market for designer shoes is set to grow to $40 billion by 2027, up from $31 billion in 2022, according to Euromonitor International. As consumer demand grows, competition is heating up for brands from Manolo Blahnik and Christian Louboutin to Chanel and Prada who stake much of their businesses on the core segment. The market is much-changed: shoppers crave comfort, but also newness and uniqueness. They also have more choices than ever: cowboy boots, Mary Janes, stilettos and mules have been trending recently. “There was this vibe shift occurring post-pandemic. The shoes that consumers want today look and feel very different from what they had before,” said Diana Lee, BoF’s director of research and analysis, on the heels of publishing BoF Insights’ latest report “The Statement Shoe: Reimagining Designer Footwear.” Key Insights: The footwear category is poised for growth this year: 84 percent of consumers surveyed across the UK, US and China told BoF Insights they were planning on investing in footwear in the coming year. At the same time, prices for women’s footwear have increased 10 percent from 2019. Shoes have gotten more expensive, partially, thanks to streetwear’s hype cycle, which has conditioned consumers to shell out for limited edition items. Of course, inflation and rising costs across the supply chain have contributed to increases. Much about the footwear market has changed. Mass trends toward casualisation have led consumers to seek out comfort, primarily, when buying shoes. Still, high heels are performing well following the return of in-person events. And, the high heel space has seen a sort of reinvention as brands opt for designs that grab consumers attention — like Loewe’s eggshell and balloon designs. Meanwhile, newcomers like Amina Muaddi are stealing share. Additional resources:BoF Insights | The New Statement Shoe: Reimagining Designer FootwearBoF Insights | What’s Next for Luxury Shoes in 5 ChartsJoin BoF Professional today with our exclusive podcast listener discount of 25% off an annual membership, follow the link here and enter the coupon code ‘debrief’ at checkout. Want more from The Business of Fashion? Subscribe to our daily newsletter here.Follow The Debrief wherever you listen to podcasts.

Background: For fashion, one of the most alluring prospects for NFTs is how they could help brands collect royalties — forever — on secondary sales of physical goods. Though the mechanics of doing so are not ironed out yet, brands could ideally code NFTs tied to physical products with smart contracts triggered by certain conditions and benefit every time an item is sold, not just at the initial sale. But, technical loopholes used to circumvent loyalties and finicky marketplaces leave brands and creators without ways to enforce rules. “One of the big principles of Web3 is these royalties are the idea that it's a creator led economy, it wouldn’t necessarily be controlled by a big centralised organisation … Except that’s not really playing out,” said BoF technology correspondent Marc Bain. Key Insights: Marketplaces are responding to controversy over enforcing royalties. Opensea, one of the biggest Web3 marketplaces, wants to attract creators, so it has an incentive to honour creator royalties. Newer marketplaces just looking for sales are willing to cut fees for buyers. This has led to an existential crisis for the NFT community, showcasing that creators are not entirely in charge in a space that was touted as having enormous potential to empower them. Marketplaces and infrastructure for fashion brands that would want to get royalties for secondary sales don’t exist right now. It also remains to be seen how brands would scale such a system. A number of start-ups including EON and Aurora Blockchain Consortium are working on linking digital identities to physical goods, but doing so is complicated. Additional resources:Is Fashion’s NFT Dream Over Before It Started?How Fashion Is Using NFTs to Sell Exclusive Physical ProductsThe Secrets to a Successful NFT DropJoin BoF Professional today with our exclusive podcast listener discount of 25% off an annual membership, follow the link here and enter the coupon code ‘debrief’ at checkout. Want more from The Business of Fashion? Subscribe to our daily newsletter here.Follow The Debrief wherever you listen to podcasts.

Much has changed about the world since the last recession — meaning, fashion’s reaction will shift this time around, explains BoF’s workplace and talent correspondent Sheena Butler Young.  Background:Fashion is bracing itself for a 2023 filled with uncertainty. An impending recession hangs in the background of executives’ conversations about the year ahead. Leaders will have to strike a balance between safe-guarding their companies (which, may inevitably will include layoffs) while continuing to fuel growth and retaining crucial employees“There’s this mindshift shift that’s happened that people truly aren’t disposable … a lot of things that would have typically happened [during a recession] are now a last resort,” said BoF’s workplace and talent correspondent Sheena Butler-Young. Key Insights: In the coming months, fashion executives will inevitably start pulling recession-reaction levers, including doing hiring pauses and layoffs, reorganising responsibilities across teams and reigning in focus on experimental spaces like the metaverse. But, market conditions are different now compared to prior recessions, and the industry has changed drastically. Because of the labour shortage, CEOs are first and foremost focused on keeping workers happy. Teams that were once considered “nice-to-haves” and “first-to-gos” — including sustainability and diversity and inclusion — have become crucial to business function for fashion companies in the past few years. Additional resources:Advice From Fashion CEOs on Leading in a RecessionQuiet Quitting, Labour Hoarding and Other Workplace Trends, ExplainedFollow The Debrief wherever you listen to podcasts. Join BoF Professional today with our exclusive podcast listener discount of 25% off an annual membership, follow the link here and enter the coupon code ‘debrief’ at checkout. Want more from The Business of Fashion? Subscribe to our daily newsletter here.

A number of products made from leather alternatives have begun to hit store shelves. BoF’s chief sustainability correspondent Sarah Kent unpacks why it's so hard to market — and scale — these new products.Background: Leather alternatives have been called both industry-changing eco-innovation, and dismissed as mere plastic — covering up complexities in how products are made and how much better or worse for the environment they are. At the same time, brands are increasingly using buzzy terms like “vegan leather” and “plant-based” to sell products, without doing much to explain their environmental impact.“You have to be very careful and very switched on to understand what it is you’re buying as a consumer,” said BoF chief sustainability correspondent Sarah Kent.  Key Insights: The emergence of items made with alternative materials — like mycelium, also known as mushroom “leather” — has sparked a conversation about how brands should name and market products without greenwashing.Because innovation is in its early stages, it's hard to understand, track and compare impact versus leather. Without clear data, the space is difficult to regulate.  Plastic is a dirty word. But, the material is so useful, it's hard to replace in fashion. Most available leather alternatives aren’t plastic free, but rather, just feature reduced plastic content. For brands working with such materials, the best course of action when it comes to talking about them is to be transparent with the consumer — rather than leading them to believe they’re buying a magic, new harmless material. Additional resources:The Truth About ‘Vegan Leather’ The Debrief: Is This the Beginning of the End for Leather?Join BoF Professional today with our exclusive podcast listener discount of 25% off an annual membership, follow the link here and enter the coupon code ‘debrief’ at checkout. Want more from The Business of Fashion? Subscribe to our daily newsletter here.Follow The Debrief wherever you listen to podcasts.

In the past decade, the independent label has grown from downtown storefront to indie force with $40 million in net sales so far this year. BoF contributor M.C. Nanda breaks down how founder Gaëlle Drevet did it. Background: Whether you know it or not, you’ve come across The Frankie Shop. Founded by former journalist Gaëlle Drevet in 2014, the brand’s monochrome tracksuits, oversized blazers, T-shirts and cargo pants have become almost ubiquitous amongst a certain set of Instagram creators, and a staple for downtown fashion types across the globe. Over the past few years, the brand has expanded from a single Lower East Side Manhattan store front, to three (including two in Paris), inked retail partnerships with Matchesfashion and Ssense, and generated $40 million in net sales so far this year. Now, The Frankie Shop is charting its next phase of growth, with expansion into menswear and home. “There is consistent demand — they’re not over extending themselves, which I think can be a really hard brand to toe as a brand of this size,” said BoF contributor M.C. Nanda. Key Insights: The Frankie Shop started as a multi-brand store carrying up-and-coming brands that are now industry mainstays, including Ganni and Loulou Studio.Drevet soon started producing her own items. Her label took off partially because of her ability to stay attuned to, and draw in influencers with newness and keen styling — without having to resort to paid posts. The brand has managed to toe the lines between cool and cheesy, high end and accessible, basic and trendy. Often, items are paired with pieces from higher end labels like Toteme and The Row. The Frankie Shop operates on a drop model, which has kept it in demand and helped the independent brand grow in a manageable way without taking on additional funding. Additional resources:What’s Next for The Frankie ShopAimé Leon Dore’s Teddy Santis on New Balance and the Future of MenswearJoin BoF Professional today with our exclusive podcast listener discount of 25% off an annual membership, follow the link here and enter the coupon code ‘debrief’ at checkout. Want more from The Business of Fashion? Subscribe to our daily newsletter here.Follow The Debrief wherever you listen to podcasts.

BoF retail correspondent Cathaleen Chen details the consumer shifts that have made it easier — and more popular than ever — to buy luxury dupes. Background: A growing number of young consumers are embracing counterfeit Prada loafers and Gucci bags, as the internet has made access to these dupes easier than ever. The value of the fake and pirated goods market has tripled since 2013 to be worth $3 trillion, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. That’s thanks to a number of factors. For one, websites like Aliexpress and DHgate connect consumers directly with counterfeit manufacturers. It’s no longer a necessity for the dupe-curious shopper to visit the shady alleys of Canal Street. Meanwhile, the skyrocketing prices of luxury products are pushing aspirational shoppers away. At the same time, the quality of luxury goods has diminished as much production has been outsourced to Asia, narrowing the gap between what’s real and what’s fake. Lastly, social media and constant seasonal trends have conditioned consumers to covet not only the “it” bag of the season but shoes, tank tops and more. “I think there’s a sense of consumer alienation with luxury goods — where it's like you’re super close to it, but at the same time it's extremely inaccessible,” said retail correspondent Cathaleen Chen. Key Insights: Counterfeits have gotten much easier to find and buy: Chinese websites like DHgate and AliExpress ship inexpensive dupes to Western consumers’ doorsteps.The counterfeit surge doesn't seem to be affecting the bottom lines of luxury goods companies, whose profits have only risen in the past few years. Resale plays an interesting role in the counterfeit conversation. On the one hand, resale could curb the continued growth of dupes by providing shoppers an entry to luxury pieces. On the other, resale is particularly vulnerable to fakes, as platforms have to be on guard against ever-more-sophisticated fakes. Additional resources:https://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/luxury/fashion-counterfeit-problem-authentication-technology/ https://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/global-markets/china-luxury-counterfeits-flourish-louis-vuitton-covid-19-douyin-pinduoduo/Join BoF Professional today with our exclusive podcast listener discount of 25% off an annual membership, follow the link here and enter the coupon code ‘debrief’ at checkout.  Want more from The Business of Fashion? Subscribe to our daily newsletter here. Follow The Debrief wherever you listen to podcasts.