NYFW may be winding down, but Coterie is on the horizon. Check out some of the great designers and brands showing this season.
1. Pologeorgis
Daniel Forest, director of sales
Your brand has collaborated with some iconic designers. Any favorites?
Zandra Rhodes. We have always had a close partnership with her and worked with her for more than 25 years. She is legendary and an important artist in our industry. She’s dressed everyone from Freddie Mercury to Princess Diana. She even has her own fashion and textile museum in London!
(Pologeorgis)
2. Stick & Ball
Elizabeth Goodwin Welborn, owner and designer/creative director
Tell us about yourself!
I am a polo player and a single mom who is passionate about sustainability in fine textiles and the environment, crazy about food and wine through my schooling and work in the California wine country, and a die-hard adventure traveler.
What snack food do you crave most while working at your booth?
Champagne, popcorn, and dark chocolate. Isn’t it like watching a movie?
(Stick & Ball)
3. Jocelyn
Jocelyn Gordon, designer
What are you excited about this season?
The launch of our faux fur accessories and an outerwear collection. The collection is called “Savage Love.” I’m obsessed with our new animal prints: zebra, cheetah, and tiger.
What are you watching these days?
Netflix documentaries. Currently, 7 Days Out is a favorite.
Do you remember your first time at Coterie?
I started in a 10-x-10 booth all the way in the back corner. To this day, it’s still my best show!
(Jocelyn)
4. Thacker
Cristina Ortigas, creative director
Who influenced your style growing up?
I definitely looked up to my father’s sisters a lot. They were always—and still are!—stylish and well-dressed.
How do you plan to recover after show season?
Definitely curling up with a nice bottle of wine—or two.
(Thacker)
5. Cavanagh Baker
Cavanagh Baker, owner and designer
What celebrity do you consider best-dressed?
Blake Lively. She has such a fun and unique sense of style!
What is your design process like?
It’s not until we source all our fabrics during our annual trips to Paris that the design process truly begins. Fabrics are what design the collection.
Outside of fashion, what inspires your brand?
Traveling. There’s something about being in a foreign city and country—I will always have an idea of what I wish I was wearing in certain places, inspired by the architecture, colors, and textures.
(Cavanagh Baker)
6. Joan Oloff
Dr. Joan Oloff, CEO and founder
How would you describe your customer?
We strongly appeal to the professional working woman who wants to look good. She may have compromised her body in the past, but she’s now refusing to do so.
How do you like to represent your product?
I do lifestyle shoots with models who are also dancers. My shoes are not “sitting shoes”—they are meant to be walked in and danced in!
(Joan Oloff)
7. Pretty One
Emilia Kulakowska, creative director
What got you interested in fashion?
I always liked to dress up and create unusual fashion styling. As a grown-up, I decided to turn that passion into a business, and step by step, I had become a creative director for a fashion brand.
What are your plans while you’re in New York?
Try some dim sum, maybe go with friends to Canal Street, and head to Serendipity 3 for its frozen hot chocolate. I plan to visit Saks Fifth Avenue and Bergdorf Goodman. If I can manage it, I would like to go skating at Rockefeller Center or to the AIRE Ancient Baths.
(Pretty One)
8. XCVI
Daniela Zeltzer, brand marketing director
Are there any fashion phases you wish you had never gone through?
For about five minutes in junior high, I wore clothes backwards, channeling Kris Kross. Oh, boy.
How would you describe your brand’s signature look?
Poplin leggings with jersey side panels, The Jetters, in an earthy tone, paired with a deep scoop, bra-friendly tank and a lightweight poplin jacket.
(XCVI)
9. A.S.98
Frank Prenntzell, chief designer
What’s your dream collab?
I’d like to collaborate with an environmental organization, like 4ocean. It’s important to be aware of how we’re consuming our planet and how to take better care of it.
Any advice for Coterie newbies?
Just have fun with it…and bring snacks!
(A.A.98)
10. Repeat Cashmere
Melissa Passarella, chief sales officer, USA
What are you excited about this season?
The introduction of leather and suede pants, jackets, and skirts! We’re not just about knitwear anymore.
Any post-Coterie recovery plans?
There will definitely be self-care involved: face masks, pedicures, a yoga class, and maybe a visit to HigherDOSE!
(Repeat Cashmere)
11. Luana Italy
Eve Bender, VP of sales for 5M USA
What’s your brand’s vision, and is there a hallmark style?
Authentic, impeccable, luxurious handbags. The Luana signature is a modern constructed top-handle satchel, like this season’s Renata and Tasha.
Any post-Coterie recovery plans?
A solid workout at the gym or a 50-mile bike ride, weather permitting, the weekend after Coterie!
(Luana)
12. Beck Bags
Leigh Moose, founder and designer
What’s your brand’s signature look?
Approachable. Inclusive. Bold.
What does your morning routine look like?
Coffee; my pug, Stella; aromatherapy, kiss my guy on the cheek; e-mails; and go — oh, and then more coffee. I’m a coffee junkie.
(Beck Bags)
13. Time’s Arrow
Eve Bender, VP of sales for 5M USA
What’s the brand’s M.O.?
The functionality with each handbag. They’re designed from the inside out.
What are you excited about this season?
There are three unique groups, with different hardware and materials.
What do you crave most while at Coterie?
Chewy ginger candies. They perk up your mind and mouth!
(Time’s Arrow)
14. Velvet Heart
Jordan Tsabag, EVP
Where do you find design inspiration?
Traveling, mostly, wherever I can go! From Europe to Asia; South America to the Middle East. Everywhere, I find amazing architecture and a mix of old and new.
What makes for a great Coterie booth?
The best booths are simplistic in design: spacious, clean-looking, contemporary, and not too cluttered.
Are there any fashion phases you wish you had never gone through?
Early 2000s style—shirts with glitter and skulls, baggy jeans, and trucker hats. Ugh!
(Velvet Heart)
15. Harrian
Christopher Belt, designer
What inspires your brand?
Art, art, art! Also, Seoul, traditional Korean architecture, machinery, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and anything vintage.
What snacks do you crave at your booth?
What I crave and what I eat are two different things. I keep protein bars, almonds, and apples available for everyone. For those feeling naughty, I’m serving Citarella black and white cookies, and good ol’ Nestle Toll House cookies.
Do you have any fun summer plans?
I’m looking forward to Porsche Fashion Week in the Coachella Valley; May will be spent in Rome, Milan, Florence, and Paris talking to buyers. Finally, what I’m looking forward to most is my tour of the U.K. My last stop is in Edinburgh, where I’ll see the Spice Girls on my birthday!
(Harrian)
16. Capote
Evelyn Riddle, creative director and founder
What is Capote known for?
Capote offers coziness and comfort that’s also grand and luxurious, with faux fur trims, which look and feel so real!
What’s new this season?
We’ve sourced magnificent new faux furs — leopard prints, silver fox, ombre effect chinchilla, and mink.
(Capote)
17. Planet by Lauren G
Lauren Grossman, owner and designer
What are you excited about this season?
Our new scuba fabric. It’s amazing — minimal, washable, and comfortable.
Who’s your dream collaborator?
Donna Karan. I read her book, My Journey, and I was shaking when I read her concept of the seven easy pieces. It is exactly what Planet’s philosophy of dressing has been for 20 years.
What advice would you give a Coterie newbie?
Be prepared and know your product inside and out. Knowledge is power.
(Planet by Lauren G)
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