WWD Series: Linda Fargo

What is your customer asking for right now?  

She’s back! She’s rediscovering the joy of shopping and the pheromones of fashion again. She wants special pieces and the signature looks from the collections and she knows they are in short supply. Fall inventories were understandably tight, and our savvy clients sense that it’s now or never. It shouldn’t be a surprise, all categories are moving, but festive, fashion-forward and dressy are notably in demand, including a welcome surge in heels again. So many life events had been postponed which are now back on our calendars. We’re all re-discovering our fashion sense, putting more effort and thought into how we look again- it’s a re-awakening really.

How do people shop these days?

We’re seeing more and more clients in the store, as she’s back in town, and we’ve made special efforts to enhance the store experience. It’s frankly fabulous to see that our clients are enjoying dressing just to come in. Needless to say, everyone is more agile and comfortable shopping online, which continues to see more traffic for us, especially as we had fortunately reset our online experience just before the pandemic started.

Are there challenges to shopping this season?

There’s a lot of new opportunities inherent in the current Spring ‘22 markets. We’re so thrilled to be touching product again. Everything looks better than ever. It’s as if we have new eyes, and are seeing the world for the first time. We’ll be buying with a new mindset, knowing that by [next] February, the world will be “normalizing” and perhaps even “giddy with life.” 

We think the designers are on the mark with collections, which are exuberant and celebratory. The new body freedom will take off, with non-safe designs, short lengths, new proportions, bright colors, sparkling materials, that will add up to compelling buying curations. 

What are you enjoying the most about coming back to Paris and physical shows? 

Technology has saved us, and continues to supplement our buying experience. We didn’t send our full teams out to in-person market, nor was the market ready for the full lot of us. Many of the overseas buying appointments will still be virtual, with the few of us on the ground sharing notes from the field. Now is a perfect segue season. T

here’s a general buzz and excitement about seeing our fashion friends and brand partners again, along with the privilege of shows and show rooms. The prohibitive and restricted experience of the pandemic gave us a fresh perspective and appreciation for our industry. It’s still imperfect, but that’s OK –it’s better than a virtual life and isolation. 

What collections were you most excited about seeing?   

Everyone, really. Everything from the big brands who pull out the stops for experiential shows, as well as the smaller, artistic brands that always create the most unique and intimate happenings. Everyone from CHANEL, DIOR and YSL to Marine Serre and Thebe Magugu – it will add up to a season to remember.