NYFW S/S 2023
*this article was originally feature on the appreciate.it blog found here.
New York fashion week was back in full swing this September after a slightly quieter fashion week last February due to the large spikes in COVID cases. Shows were finally at full capacity once again, and there seemed to be a never-ending line up of events, whether it was runway shows, presentations, talks hosted at spring studios, orendless pop-up events. There was something for everyone this year. I would say, at the heart of every event I attended, the message was clear: luxury is being redefined. Long gone are the days of extreme exclusivity being part of branding, with metaverse and digital fashion applications being mentioned more than ever. Luxury is about bringing personalized and meaningful experiences to anyone who wants it.
As a micro-influencer and marketing director, fashion week was filled with PR events, social gatherings amongst bloggers, presentations, shows, panels, and satellite events that I was fortunate enough to attend. I kicked off NYFW a day early this year, having been invited to an event in Soho for wine and cheese with many NYC bloggers by my friend Austen Tosone of Keep Calm & Chiffon. I met some great women who are all doing some amazing things in the fashion space, whether that be planning ‘Like to Know It’ pages for some of the biggest influencers out there, or being a schoolteacher by day and fashion blogger by night. I learned a lot and got to see some new and old faces.
On Thursday, I attended a PR event for Lively to see its new fall collection. The free manicures, goodie bags, and a set from their new collection were all huge draws to the event. Again, running into friends and industry peers is one of the most exciting parts of attending these smaller events during fashion week.
On Friday, the first official day of fashion week, I attended Revolve’s new gallery for the season and the Rebecca Minkoff presentation. The Revolve gallery was a feat to see with over 20 rooms consisting of different themes and unique decorations – you could really see the effort put into the exhibit. There was a line for influencers that made it easier to get in quickly without a crowd, but I would not recommend it. The clothing itself was not super exciting to me, but the couple pieces I did love featured sequin skirts with feather trim - not extremely practical but definitely had some ‘wow’ factor.
Rebecca Minkoff’s presentation had digital fashion at the forefront. If you know anything about her brand, you know she’s been ahead of the game by incorporating NFTs and Web3 components into her brand’s vision.. Her pieces for Spring/Summer focused on an edgy pure-white and silver aesthetic. Models were standing around a room covered in futuristic graphics of NYC cityscapes that were constantly shifting like a kaleidoscope. In another room, the same models were featured on screens in digital form. The crowd had tons of famous TikTokers and bloggers networking, enjoying drinks, and watching the show.
I then had to pause NYFW for the weekend to attend a good friend's wedding, but came back on Sunday to help prepare for our own appreciating fashion week event! Before the event, I attended a few new pop ups, including Chanel’s beauty atelier and Zero 10 (which was the talk of digital fashion this year). The Chanel beauty atelier was a new kind of experience – think the Sephora try-on stations, but more luxe and larger. They had samples of everything in the Chanel beauty line from lip to face care. The store was immaculate and I highly recommend checking it out.
Zero 10 was something I heard multiple friends and peers talking about all week. This was the most concrete example of digital fashion I have come across so far. In the middle of Soho, there was a pop up completely covered in green and white tiles. You walk in, are told about the app you need to download, and then you walk through to ‘fitting rooms.’ There are no clothes or items in the store. Instead, you pull up the app and get access to 40+ digital items that were dropped exclusively for fashion week. From coats with flames on them, to silver butterfly wings, to larger than life dresses, it was so cool to see this new iteration of fashion. The implications for sustainability are profound. It really felt like the first time digital fashion was being put into use for real life.
After those pop ups, it was finally time for our fingerprinting event! It was a huge success, selling out multiple times. We reached capacity at the venue 10x over; luckily, people were nice about filtering through after having their champagne, cream puffs, and snapping some cool photos. Attendees were able to test out our new fingerprinting technology feature that helped identify which of three Balenciaga Cagole bags belonged to a particular celebrity. Although all three bags are identical to the human eye, appreciate’s app is able to pull details invisible to humans to help identify the bags. This has huge implications for ownership, authentication, and more!
Monday was the last day of fashion week for me. I attended the KGL presentation and then a talk at spring studios on Phygital Fashion. KGL had some amazing pieces; there was a lot of color and the wide-leg pants trend is definitely not going anywhere after seeing those models.
My final event was at spring studios and I got to see a new friend, Michelle Reeves - CEO of Mavion, speak about her experience and interest in digital fashion along with some other influential women. She recounted a story of how her 10-year-old son asked her to go into a Balenciaga store just to get the fortnite t-shirt collab - luckily he didn’t want the $1600 t-shirt when he found out it didn’t come with the digital skin for his character in Fortnite. This story really amplifies how much the next generation is going to value digital fashion.
Ultimately, this fashion week was a huge success. I am confident in the future of sustainable fashion through digital means. I am happier than ever to be a part of appreciate and furthering its vision of elevating ownership for individuals. People want to see the value of their items and garner novel insights more than ever. We want to take our real life things into the digital realm and vice versa.
