Next Time, We'll Skip It Chanel After several days of watching beautiful people march down runways wearing everything from spectacular clothes to upholstered headgear, enormous T-shirts, exposed bras, cone-shaped breasts and shoes that appear to require a building permit, we can confidently report one thing: Fashion may have finally lost its fucking mind. To be fair, there were some genuinely beautiful clothes. Hermès reminded everyone that luxury doesn't need to be loud. The

Beyond Repair? There was a time when Nike could put a Swoosh on damn near anything and we wanted it. Jordan. Agassi. Bo Jackson. Tiger. Kobe. Serena. Nike didn’t participate in sports culture. Nike owned it. Today, the Swoosh looks less like a symbol of athletic dominance and more like something hanging over the clearance rack at an outlet mall. So what the hell happened? Let’s Start with the stock. A Big Dunk Nike shares have collapsed roughly 80% from their pandemic-er

Dressing for work used to be relatively simple. Suit. Shirt. Tie. Decent shoes. Done. No Matter Which Guy You Are, Look Good! Not anymore. Today we have two very different professional animals. Guy #1 is in the office five days a week. He sees senior management, sits through meetings, entertains at business lunches and occasionally goes straight from the office to cocktails. People see him…constantly. Impression matters. Guy #2 works primarily from home, appears in the office

And It's A Simple Tote The 5-Tote in Denim Just when you thought Gap’s greatest contribution to civilization was the perfect gray sweatshirt and a pair of jeans, the company has managed to create something genuinely buzzy: the Five Pocket Tote. And people apparently lost their minds over it. Gap launched its new GapBag Collection on September 8, with the Five Pocket Tote as the obvious star. The concept is ridiculously simple, and that’s precisely why it works. Take the famil

How a great American shoe brand traded swagger for foam soles. Always a Sale There was a time when Cole Haan was cool. Not Gucci cool. Not Ferragamo expensive. Cole Haan was American-successful-guy cool. Great loafers, handsome wingtips, beautiful leather and just enough polish to tell people you had graduated from whatever square-toed disaster you wore in your first job. The Cole Haan Standard Cole Haan once had a point of view, but today, walk into a Cole Haan store and try

The Once Popular Brand Is Stuck In a Downward-Dog There was a time when Lululemon could slap its tiny logo on a pair of black leggings, charge $128 and watch suburban America stampede toward the register. Those days appear to be doing downward dog straight into the floor. Lululemon just delivered another ugly quarter. Revenue fell 4% to $2.4 billion, comparable sales dropped a brutal 9%, and sales in the Americas—the market that built this stretchy little empire—fell 8%. Amer

Anna Wintour, John Galliano and Fashion’s Convenient Case of Amnesia Galliano Tribute Cancelled *LESS THAN 12 HOURS AFTER THIS ARTICLE WAS POSTED, THE MET'S ART AND COSTUME INSTITUTE/S BOARD CANCELLED THE GALLIANO TRIBUTE OVER SEVERE BACKLASH. THE CHOICE TO EVEN CONSIDER THE EVENT SHOULD DRAW EVEN MORE SCRUTINY. READ THE UPDATED PIECE BELOW: Well, congratulations, fashion. You’ve officially run out of people to honor. The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute (on kne

Does Anyone Make a Better Jean Than Levi's? King Of Denim There are cheaper jeans than Levi’s and there are certainly more expensive jeans than Levi’s. There are jeans made from exotic Japanese selvedge denim, jeans that feel more like sweatpants, and designer jeans costing enough that you may hesitate before sitting on a park bench. And then there are Levi’s. More than 150 years after Levi Strauss helped turn riveted work pants into an American institution, Levi’s remains th

Entry Level Relevance Location, location, location! The mantra for good retail. Pair that with price and product and ostensibly, you have a winner. Today, the most powerful brands are competing for something considerably harder to put together: cultural relevance. That is why Retail Boss’s recent analysis of M·A·C is so revealing. The beauty giant made 11 major moves in the first quarter of 2026 alone, combining celebrity partnerships, fashion collaborations, activism, physic

For Many Brands, It's Still Chasing Summer Vacations What is Q2 2026 telling us? The latest Lyst Index (https://www.lyst.com/the-lyst-index/) is out for Q2 and if there is one overriding message from fashion consumers, it's simple: We're hot. We're going somewhere dreamy and please stop showing us wool coats in July. 2026 Q2 Searches Chanel remains No 1. Chanel could probably release a $2,000 beach towel and have a waiting list by Thursday. Its Coco Beach and Métiers d'Art 2

The Snobs, Pageantry and Pony Moms of the Hamptons Classic The Pony Mom Illustration by Trivia Draws Every summer, as August burns itself out and Labor Day looms like a threat to linen pants, the Hamptons Classic Horse Show gallops into Bridgehampton, and with it comes an elite stampede of high-society posers, passive-aggressive riders, champagne-sipping nouveau snobs, Pony Moms and influencers Wouldn’t know a crop from a crop top. Some will tell you the Classic is one of the

Isaac Mizrahi Comes Home to Target Issac Mizrahi Some designers make fashion, but not many make fashion fun. Isaac Mizrahi has always belonged in the second category. His return to Target (this time as the retailer’s first Creative Director at Large) feels less like a corporate appointment and more like an old friend coming home. An old friend who knows exactly where the good stuff is hidden. But there’s another reason Mizrahi’s return is so interesting. Target may be the ret

Apparently, We’re Shopping, Obsessing and Going Back to School. The TikToc Numbers Are Staggering If you ever wanted a snapshot of what America is thinking about (without having to talk to America) then TikTok has graciously provided one. The results are fascinating, occasionally predictable and just a little disturbing. Let’s start with the undisputed heavyweight: #TikTokShop with 148.9 million posts. Not views. Posts! Apparently, TikTok is no longer merely where people wast

Why Brands Are Courting Customers On The Way Up Challenger Brands Are Delivering For years, luxury retail operated according to a simple rule: follow the money. The best sales associate, the private shopping room, the first look at a new collection, invitations to dinners and special events… all were generally reserved for the customer already spending enormous amounts of money. But something interesting is happening in fashion. Some of the smartest brands are beginning to re

Amazon Essentials Crush in Price and Value Stretch Leggings $9.00 There is something mildly irritating about paying $89 for a workout shirt and $69 for shorts to sweat in. Yes, the fabric is technical. Yes, it wicks moisture. Yes, somebody in the marketing department has given the material a proprietary name that sounds like it was developed for NASA. But I'm walking five miles and dripping in sweat in it. I'm not climbing Everest. Which brings us to Amazon Essentials activew

Has anyone noticed? From the Wrangler x LoveShackFancy Campaign On paper, this collaboration should have been a runaway success. Wrangler, an American icon with nearly eight decades of authentic Western heritage has teamed up with LoveShackFancy, the darling of feminine florals, vintage romance and Instagram-worthy style. Sure, seems like the perfect marriage. Denim, embroidery, boots, lace, bows and a touch of ranch life? What's not to love? Yet somehow, the Wrangler x LoveS

Camiceria Artigiana The Finest Shirtmaker in Italy Mother and Daughter in their Turin Shop In an era when so much of luxury has become mass-produced, there are still a handful of places where craftsmanship reigns supreme. Tucked away in the heart of Turin is one such treasure: Camiceria Artigiana, a family-owned shirtmaker that has quietly built a reputation for producing some of Italy's finest bespoke shirts. Carmen. Il Maestro The story begins with Carmen, who entered the

Watery Blues Capri, Azure, Coastal and Aqua Have Become Luxury's Defining Color Family Every few years, fashion crowns a color that seems to appear everywhere at once. Not because designers secretly conspire behind closed doors, (the mills do that!) but because the mood of the moment changes. Summer 2026 belongs to blue. Specifically, that brilliant family of shades somewhere between the Mediterranean Sea and a cloudless Caribbean sky. Call it Ca

Fall 2026 Fashion is tired of screaming short term trends Stella McCartney After several years of oversized logos, viral TikTok outfits, and trends that lasted about as long as a carton of milk, Fall 2026 has decided to grow up. Luxury has veered into the proper lane of wearing impeccable tailoring and carrying a handbag that matters…and that means no Bu Bu charms! This season isn't about owning more. It's about owning better. The biggest runway story from New York, London, M

Desire leads to purchases. Who is leading the way? Louis Vuitton On Top You likely buy from Luxury brands…you know the ones: Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Prada, Chanel and others. But purchasing is the end result of desire. Before placing the Black Card down, you probably had an itch, saw an ad or needed some retail therapy. So, what brands lead the half-year mark for desirability? Latest rankings show Louis Vuitton firmly at the top of the global luxury hierarchy, not simply becaus