(Pictured, Christian Siriano; with actress Danielle Brooks; and models at his 2017 runway show in NYC)
Christian Siriano is a multi-talented genius so far in the fashion industry. We know.
According to Fashionista, To say designer Christian Siriano is busy would be something of an understatement.
"High-end retail is a little bit scary — there's stores closing and things are really changing — so I just want to diversify when I can," he explains. "I think that's maybe why older brands are having that challenge [in retail], because it is a struggle." In 30 years, he says, it might be too difficult to do these high-profile collaborations, so why not try everything while he's still in the early stages of his career and see what sticks?
(Christian Siriano, Fall 2017)
While he cautions that not everything he's tried has worked, that hasn't been the case with his Lane Bryant line: most of the pieces have completely sold through since launching last year ("I love a sell out," he says with a giggle). It's interesting, then, that he showed the clothes on the runway after they became available. In fact, the experience has made him consider the "see now, buy now" movement much more seriously. "I will say, watching what happened with Lane Bryant launching a week ago and seeing how items sold so quickly and in the moment, it's kind of amazing."
So now we wonder now what can we expect this year for new comer in Plus Size fashion, During an interview with Refinery29, Catering to all women goes beyond size or age or race for Siriano, who has blown out his business to include not only ready-to-wear and bridal, but a bevy of other categories, too: shoes and bags for Payless, a plus collection with Lane Bryant, bedding with Bed Bath & Beyond, and, naturally, a fragrance. “It’s mind blowing, I’m like, Wow, that’s cool, who knew that I could sell 100,000 units of a sheet!"
"It’s strange,” he says. “It is different, and people for a long time said different is not right.” Different has certainly proven otherwise in this case, which Siriano credits to not immediately being welcomed into fashion’s elite inner circle a decade ago. “For the first six years, nobody gave a shit. I didn’t have the industry on my side in the beginning,” he says. “When I started, so did a lot of other people. Jason [Wu], Prabal [Gurung], early on I thought I have to be like them and doing what they’re doing and getting what they’re getting. You compare. I used to take it so personal, but it’s not always about this fabulous It person in fashion that’s changing the game.” As once-darling businesses flounder under the pressure to perform (think: Thakoon and Wes Gordon), and more and more celebrated young American labels are fleeing New York for Paris (e.g. Proenza Schouler, Joseph Altuzarra, and Rodarte), his words are prophetic if a bit pointed. “If people aren’t buying the clothes, no one cares,” he says. Plain and simple. As once-darling businesses flounder under the pressure to perform (think: Thakoon and Wes Gordon), and more and more celebrated young American labels are fleeing New York for Paris (e.g. Proenza Schouler, Joseph Altuzarra, and Rodarte), his words are prophetic if a bit pointed. “If people aren’t buying the clothes, no one cares,” he says. Plain and simple.