The Future of Fashion by Vogue Business

After 10 years and taking her company public, Stitch Fix founder Katrina Lake is stepping down as CEO. Taking her place this August is Elizabeth Spaulding, who joined the company shortly before the pandemic hit, rocking the online retailer’s business. Now, Stitch Fix is in rebound mode, and Spaulding is laying the foundation for the company’s next 10 years. Already, Stitch Fix has begun adding new features to its try-before-you-buy model that put e-commerce more at the centre; the goal is to build a new way to shop online that gives customers a range of options focused on personalisation. Spaulding joined the final episode of this season of The Future of Fashion: The Innovators podcast to discuss why media companies aren’t competition to commerce, the way people are shopping now and the overall health of the retail industry

On The Future of Fashion: The Innovators podcast, executive Americas editor Hilary Milnes speaks to Jenny Campbell, CMO of Kate Spade, and PayPal’s Greg Lisiewski on fashion’s outlook led by Gen Z trend setters. Gen Z set industry trends. That’s influenced how Kate Spade shows up online, what products are best-sellers and the e-commerce and retail strategies the brand invests in, says CMO Jenny Campbell. At the same time, the role of the CMO has changed, requiring insight over areas like customer service and clienteling to storytelling on platforms like YouTube and TikTok. Campbell joined Vogue Business’s The Future of Fashion: The Innovators podcast along with Greg Lisiewski, PayPal’s VP and GM of global pay products, to discuss how e-commerce and retail are changing alongside this emerging customer.

Renzo Rosso is still building. The founder of Diesel and chairman of OTB, the Italian luxury group, led the acquisition of Jil Sander earlier this year and more M&A isn’t off the table. In seeking out brands that will be a fit for OTB, which he says is an alternative to the larger French luxury conglomerates, he looks for talent, creativity and “bravery”. (OTB stands for Only The Brave.)

Poshmark co-founder Tracy Sun joins the Vogue Business Future of Fashion: The Innovators podcast to discuss an upcoming partnership with Snapchat that will broaden the company’s reach, its outlook on sustainability and the potential of working with brands directly.

American Giant founder and CEO believes brands will begin to commit to materials like organic cotton and fair living wages for supply chain workers as government and customer pressure builds. As part of this shift, America’s apparel manufacturing industry will play a bigger role in the industry.

The Yes founder Julie Bornstein joined the Vogue Business Future of Fashion podcast to discuss launching her company during a pandemic, why she doesn’t consider Instagram a fashion competitor (it’s the ads) and how user data informs the shopping experience.

Munira Rahemtulla, the director of Amazon Live, joined the Vogue Business Future of Fashion podcast to discuss the talent, creative and brand work that goes into building out a live stream shopping arm of Amazon and ambitions to become the next QVC for modern customers.

On this episode of The Future of Fashion: The Innovators podcast, Eileen Fisher and Fibershed executive director Rebecca Burgess, who works with brands to help them incorporate more sustainable materials into their businesses, join executive Americas editor Hilary Milnes and senior sustainability editor Rachel Cernansky for a conversation on how companies can navigate sustainability priorities at a faster pace.