Fashion designer Michelle Smith and SoulCycle instructor Stacey Griffith are introducing their sportswear line, Love & Sports, at Walmart. The line is designed to be on trend, with vibrant colors and unique fabrics.
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Over the past two years, fashion designer Michelle Smith and SoulCycle instructor Stacey Griffith have touched dozens of fabrics, mentioned brand names and tried on samples of sports bras and leggings while lounging around the house or sweating it out during workouts.
Now, the New York City-based couple is revealing their secret project: Love & Sports, an elevated sportswear and swim brand they’re debuting. walmart. The new brand hits the large retailer’s website on Friday and is rolling out to 1,500 stores.
“I think some of our friends really thought we were having a baby because we couldn’t talk about something and they said, ‘We can’t go. We have something to work on,'” Griffith said.
“I guess we’re going to have a baby,” Smith said, with a smile.
Smith co-founded the high-end clothing brand Milly and designed the dress worn by Michelle Obama in her Smithsonian portrait. She now has a new namesake line of chic items, from silk camisoles to alpaca coats, which can go for as much as $2,750 each.
Meanwhile, Griffith has gained a following as an indoor cycling teacher and went on a motivational tour with Oprah Winfrey. The designer and fitness instructor met, and then started dating, thanks to a SoulCycle class.
The fashion-forward clothing collection is another sign of the retailer’s efforts to shake up its reputation and become known as a place where shoppers can find stylish clothes alongside milk, bananas and televisions.
Walmart has launched a growing number of upscale and elevated fashion names, including Sofia Jeans, a denim brand developed with actress Sofia Vergara; Eloquii Elements, a plus-size women’s brand inspired by the acquired Eloquii brand; Scoop, a cutting-edge women’s fashion brand; and Free Assembly, a line of everyday wardrobe clothing for men, women and children.
He has also harnessed the star power of other fashion names, notably hiring Brandon Maxwell, who has dressed famous women like Lady Gaga, as creative director of Scoop and Free Assembly.
Love & Sports will be sold on the Walmart website and in 1,500 stores. His first collection includes 121 pieces that range in price from $12 to $42.
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Walmart, which still gets most of its annual revenue from the grocery business, doesn’t break out clothing sales from other general merchandise, such as home décor and electronics.
Denise Incandela, executive vice president of apparel and private labels for Walmart US, said the retailer was drawn to Love & Sports’ unique designs and bold colors. She said that partnering with Smith and Griffith created an opportunity to excel in a category where high quality often comes at a high price.
The idea for the new brand was born when Smith contacted Incandela via direct message on Instagram in the early months of the pandemic. Incandela, a Saks Fifth Avenue alumnus, knew Smith because the upscale chain had her Milly clothing line.
Later, Smith shared some initial sketches that he had worked on for a few months. “It’s such a natural extension of Stacey and me that it almost designed itself,” she said. “It just flowed through the paper.”
Smith, who trained at elite fashion houses like Hermes and Louis Vuitton, said she and Griffith were looking to make clothes that fit both budgets and bodies.
The brand’s first collection includes 121 pieces that range in price from $12 to $42. It includes retro jogging shorts, cropped sweatshirts, and seamless bras. Its size varies from XS to XXXL for sportswear and up to XXL for swimwear.
Items have details that mix street fashion and fitness, like plenty of cell phone pockets, invisible interior zippers to secure credit cards, and belts that can be worn high-waisted (Smith’s preferred style) or rolled up. for a low waist gaze (Griffith preference).
Love & Sports will add footwear and accessories, including sneakers and bags, in the fall.
Love & Sports debuts with swimsuits. In the fall, the line will include shoes and accessories.
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Sportswear has become a hotter, but busier, field during the pandemic. Sales in the men’s and women’s apparel category increased from $52.3 billion in 2019 to $70.8 billion in 2021, an increase of 35% over the two-year period, according to The NPD Group. The market research group includes all clothing items with active features, such as moisture-wicking fabrics.
Kristen Classi-Zummo, an industry analyst who covers fashion clothing for The NPD Group, said some observers were betting that as the pandemic receded, people would go out into the world dressed again and eager to dress up like in the roaring 20s
Instead, he said, people have largely sought out comfortable, versatile garments that fit into a hybrid lifestyle, such as pants stretchy enough to allow for a brisk walk around the block between virtual meetings or a longer-than-average sports bra. It can be combined with training. leggings, as well as jeans and heels.
However, as the category has grown, so has the number of brands competing for market share. The number of sportswear brands increased from 1,600 in 2014 to 2,400 in 2021, according to NPD. That field includes players from lululemon Y Nike to private brands launched by companies such as Goal, Kohl’s Y Dick’s Sporting Goods.
Classi-Zummo expects sportswear to remain popular this year and beyond, but to have a slower-than-double-digit growth rate in 2021, and that, he said, will increase competition for consumers.
“We still anticipate that it will grow, but what is a brand to do in a market that is seeing less growth and much more competition?” she said. “She’s been shopping for sportswear for years. She doesn’t need another pair of black leggings. What special features, what new fit, what new fabric can you offer her to keep her interested in the category?”
Griffith said Love & Sports was inspired, in part, by a pandemic-related shift toward “an era of luscious fabrics.”
She said she already secretly sported the brand to SoulCycle classes, but hid sports bras under tops and wore shorts without a logo. Now, however, she’s looking forward to the big reveal of hers.
Source: news.google.com