Hi, and welcome back to Line Sheet. It’s Friday, we’re all exhausted, everyone is emailing Anna about the Vanity Fair gig, everyone else is still reeling over the tariff news, and everyone-everyone else is sedated.
For those still conscious, Sarah “SShapiro@puck.news” Shapiro traveled to Marin Country Mart, the idyllic shopping center run by eccentric real estate developer Jim Rosenfield, to see what it takes to get people to shop these days. Sarah also debunks a Meghan Markle myth, falls into a John Elliott black hole (remember that brand?), and finally, I offer up more fodder for those eager to participate in the appointment of the next editor of Vanity Fair. (Your opinion matters… to me!)
Programming note: Tomorrow on Fashion People, I’m joined by Jesse Lee, founder of Basic.Space and the owner of Design Miami, to discuss everything from the culture of club promotion in the 2000s to why he believes Demna is the right choice for Gucci. (He called it two years ago, I swear!) We recorded live from last weekend’s Design.Space LA event at the Pacific Designer Center, one of the freakiest buildings in Los Angeles. Listen here and here.
🛍️ Also, for those of you with the Shoppies (and for Bobbi Brown, who asked me to do this): Here are some of the items we talk about in the episode: Double C Chanel earrings, Bottega Veneta animal chair, Enorme telephone, Balenciaga Coffee Cup Bag, Westman Atelier highlighter, and Victoria Beckham x Augustinus Bader tinted moisturizer.
Mentioned in this issue: Radhika Jones, Mel Ottenberg, Vanity Fair, Meghan Markle, Margaret and Katherine Kleveland, Dôen, John Elliott, Monse, David Wertheimer, Emily Holt, Marin Country Mart, Christiane Celle, Val Kilmer, Kaia Gerber, Josh Duboff, and many more…
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Four Things You Should Know…
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- The Vanity Fair candidate pool expands: In yesterday’s issue, I outlined what I know about Radhika Jones’s Vanity Fair exit, from the health of the magazine to succession scenarios. As I mentioned yesterday, I surmised that Jones was asked to further cut her budget as revenue goals
grew and refused the ultimatum—it was an “impossible amount,” one person suggested—and therefore gave up. My assessment is that her hand was forced, and that the company knew this would be the likely outcome, but I’ve also been told that other top editors are being given similar budget guidance. As for succession: Boy, do you all have opinions! Many of you agreed with my analysis (Mike Hogan isn’t a real candidate) and are pulling for Stella Bugbee. But there were several other people—on top of my already fairly long list—who are part of the conversation here. The number one write-in was Mel Ottenberg, current editor-in-chief of Interview and frequent Fashion People guest. Mel could 100 percent do this job; he’s a news junkie, always nails the story, has style for miles, and knows how to assemble a team that would give the title sizzle. I didn’t mention him, though, because he probably makes the same amount shooting one advertising campaign that he would earn in a whole year at Vanity Fair. (No way they’d let him do extracurriculars.) That said, let’s throw his name in the hat.Others were shocked I didn’t call out my (one-sided) ride or die: W magazine’s Sara Moonves. Well, that’s because she should be the next editor of Vogue, not Vanity Fair, and she’s smart enough to know the job would not be as fun as her current gig, where she has an ownership position. Other honorable-but-unlikely mentions include Bloomberg Pursuits’ Chris Rovzar (love him, but probably too nice); GQ deputy editor Adam Baidawi (handsome, international, worked at The New York Times for a year); T magazine’s Nick Haramis (lovely, smart, underutilized); and of course, Sarah Ball, WSJ.’s current editor and an ace at navigating tricky workplace situations, including managing up. (WSJ. is nothing if not an audition for Vanity Fair.) Finally, since Men Are Back, why don’t we have a little fun and drag Adam Rapoport into this mess. Incredibly smug? For sure. Kinda annoying? Definitely. A great editor and brand builder? Yes. Also: Never going to happen, obviously.
The problem with Radhika-era Vanity Fair was that it was boring. Wintour’s friends don’t read it, nor do Bee Carrozzini’s. That’s a problem, and one that several of these candidates could solve. (With the right support and resources, of course.) A number of people outside of the building are campaigning for Mark Guiducci, Wintour’s creative editorial director, who manages various projects—from the brand’s film and television pursuits, to cover concepts, to live events. (He’s incredibly ambitious.)
Some have reservations because they still view Guiducci as a lackey, and others are convinced she wouldn’t let him go because she wants to keep him for Vogue World, the annual live performance he
produces. That may be true, but I could see a setup where he still does that. After all, there’s a precedent. In Graydon Carter’s recently released memoir, When the Going Was Good, the former editor reminisces about Vanity Fair’s original demise in the 1930s, as readers turned away from the title. “It fell out of fashion with the onset of the Depression and the rise of Nazism,” Carter wrote. Guess what happened next? “In 1936, Condé Nast folded it into Vogue.”
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Sarah Shapiro |
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- Royal revenue stream: Ever since I wrote about the Duchess of Sussex’s new affiliate link venture and ShopMy shop, readers have repeatedly asked me one question: Is Meghan Markle an investor in ShopMy? The answer is no—at least not yet. Yes, the company has attracted strategic investors in the multihyphenate Markle mold. There’s Shea McGee, the interior designer/TV host/McGee & Co. furniture brand co-founder/lifestyle influencer, who drops links to her fashion, beauty, and home picks. But ShopMy is a professional enterprise that just raised $77.5 million in January from institutional investors, such as Bessemer Venture Partners and Bain Capital.For what it’s worth, Markle’s portfolio of investments already includes Cesta Collective—a handbag line she’s been spotted carrying—and Clevr Blends, a latte and tea company. Should Markle take the strategic investment step on her affiliate marketing journey, she could use her global platform and expand As Ever’s retail footprint—just so long as she builds up the replenishment inventory to stay in stock, given that her debut products sold out within an hour this week.
- John Elliott on the brink: As I wrote in my Friday channel check last week, there was some confusion over the state of Miami’s John Elliott store. Was it closing or not? An Elliott insider told me that, well, it
depends.
John Elliott was founded in 2012 with a casual, skater-guy style inspired by its namesake founder’s Northern California youth—t-shirts, denim, and other casual Cali essentials. In 2014, John Elliott was named best new menswear line in America by GQ. In 2017, the brand did a major collab with Gap. Elliott fans have included LeBron James, Justin Bieber, and no fewer than three Kardashian paramours.In 2019, John Elliott opened his brand’s first location in L.A., which survived with a strong sweats and casuals game. More stores followed, including in Aspen, SoHo, and Miami. According to the aforementioned insider, the business ballooned with the slim sweats craze of the late 2010s and continued to thrive during Covid. But sales declined when shoppers returned to stores post-pandemic. The Aspen store recently closed.Anyway, it’s clear from my conversations this week that the brand has been undercapitalized for some time. There are a few investors in John Elliott already, including Runyon Ventures, which also invested in Buck Mason. A new round of investment, or an acquisition, might be needed to turn the tides. At least one interested party appears to be
Authentic Brands Group, whose portfolio includes other casual skater- and surf-inspired brands. Meanwhile, the Miami store hangs in the balance.
- And finally…: Here are some new stores and launches you may have missed: Monse is opening their first store in downtown NYC, first with an appointment-only soft opening. Brooks Brothers continues to read the room with cool vintage button-ups from their own archives (go for a fun multistripe that feels both retro and reminiscent of current Alex Mill stripes). And Moda Operandi has expanded their designer roster, making it easier to shop indie talents: There are Jackson Wiederhoeft corsets and deadstock lace skirts for avant-garde event dressing (Wiederhoeft is a Vogue/CFDA Fashion Fund finalist); lines now available from designers Niccolò Pasqualetti and Colleen Allen, from The Row’s alumni network; and a launch from Daniella Kallmeyer following her Net-a-Porter debut.
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Reflections on Jim Rosenfield’s agreeably bougie mecca for Bay Area fashion worthies and families on weekends, plus some informed speculation about what comes next.
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Tucked into the shadow of the Golden Gate Bridge, Marin Country Mart is a sleepy shopping enclave that turns into “mayhem at the mart,” in the words of one proprietor, on Saturdays. The agreeably bougie mall is a regular, one-stop destination for fashion-forward Bay Area worthies disenchanted with the usual Silicon Valley fleece livery, or Marin County moms looking for that effortless, but deeply sourced, weekend outfit. “Beautiful shopping area, almost always warm and sunny, 20 minutes from the city, plenty of parking,” said one chuffed regular.
Last weekend, sisters Margaret and Katherine Kleveland had a soft opening here for their newest Dôen location. But for fashion insiders, the first and last stop is often Hero Shop, the boutique owned by former Vogue fashion news editor Emily Holt, who curates brands like The Row, High Sport, and Khaite—clothes and accessories conspicuously lacking in the
area’s retail ecosystem. Holt told me the shoppers who come to Hero tend to be on a mission for what she calls “smart investments”—the perfect pair of Agolde or Khaite jeans, Elder Statesman sweaters, or loafers from The Row. Marin shoppers love a flat, per Holt. “They don’t need a logo, but will buy fashion,” she said, noting they’ll think nothing of spending $1,000 on a sweater and grabbing multiple pairs of $300 premium jeans to go with it. If you’re keeping your powder somewhat dry, you can do more modest damage with La Ligne striped sweaters, Veronica Beard blazers and denim, and elevated t-shirts and easy sweatsuit separates from The Great.
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Developer Jim Rosenfield put The Marin County Mart—a shopping and dining and spa destination—together as a community gathering place for wealthy and comfortable families. An annual Easter egg hunt draws hundreds of Bay Area kids to the outdoor mall. For better or worse, the Mart doesn’t get hordes of teen shoppers—there’s no Sephora or Lululemon—though Gen Z does turn up for the Birkenstock boutique and the recently opened LoveShackFancy. Their younger siblings can get sugared up at Miette candy and go nuts in Toy Crazy or Poppy Store, which was opened by Heather Whitney Rosenfield, Jim Rosenfield’s wife, and Jenny Belushi— Jim Belushi’s ex-wife. If you need a hostess gift after house-guesting at your favorite tech billionaire’s manse, you can swing by Hudson Grace (founded by ex-Williams-Sonoma executive Monelle Totah and former fragrance executive Gary McNatton, and recently acquired by Crate & Barrel) or Clic, founded by former Calypso pioneer Christiane Celle.
The Country Mart has also become an unexpected nexus of retail influence: Executives from Bay Area retail giants like The RealReal, Gap, Levi’s, and Williams-Sonoma live nearby and frequently pop in to do channel checks. Lately, I’ve noticed that the location’s The RealReal shop is doing more resale than Dôen, perhaps a sign that local shoppers are discarding the fashion of previous seasons and ready to shop the new stuff. (The shop has the dress Chloë Sevigny recently bought secondhand.) The top-selling items in the newest Dôen are the Pascual jacket (ideal for the cooler Bay Area temps) and easy dresses like the Ashlynn and this top to pair back to the denim uniform.
Then there’s the former Bed Bath & Beyond space,
yawning seductively empty, fomenting rumors of future pickleball courts, bowling alleys, ice rinks—or, most tantalizingly, an Erewhon market, L.A.’s ultimate status grocery. Would Bay Area residents, raised on Patagonia fleece and sprouted grains, pay $19 for a single strawberry? All that mayhem at the mart suggests the answer is a resounding yes.
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Other Stuff Lauren Thinks Is Worth Knowing…
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Big baby! What a trend. [ X]
Congrats to the LVMH Prize semifinalists: Alainpaul, All-in, Francesco Murano, Soshiotsuki, (RISD grad) Steve O Smith, Tolu Coker, Torishéju (a fave), and Zomer. Happy for them, but I have to say: Mfpen was robbed!
The New Yorker is going hard on collaborations. In some ways, I’m pro. The brand alignments (J.Crew, but especially Sleepy Jones) have a certain logic. The execution is so-so. How much money is The New Yorker getting for lending its name to these commercial entities? I don’t know, but I hope it was a lot.
David Wertheimer, one of the Chanel heirs, invested in the internet t-shirt brand True Classic at an $850 million valuation. Apparently, this brand has more than $500 million a year in sales. If you, too, are befuddled, it’s worth watching this video about how they juiced their marketing. The way the rough-hewn logo is stamped onto each t-shirt makes me die a little inside, but honestly, congrats to anyone who gets it done with a Chanel heir. [ BoF]
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Like every other person born in 1982, I love Top Gun. But for me, Val Kilmer’s real achievement was Real Genius. Jon Gries, who plays Greg in White Lotus, is also in it—and plays a real weirdo—if you need further motivation. I never really considered the clothes of Kilmer’s character, but when I look again…there’s something very Jacob Gallagher about it! [ A Blog from 2012]
Kaia Gerber picked writer Josh Duboff’s Early Thirties for her book club, Library Science, and then hosted an event at the Aman in New York on Tuesday night. Josh read from the book, then he and Kaia chatted. Both Cindy Crawford and Randy Gerber showed up!
So did Paul Needham from The Infatuation! This is how you sell books, people. [Inbox]
For those invested in the Menswear Guy narrative, he has arranged a fight with a hater outside Uniqlo in San Francisco on Sunday afternoon. [ X]
The co-C.E.O. of On Running is exiting after 12 years. Seems like standard procedure. Correct me if I’m wrong. [ Reuters]
Yet another big name heads to a high street brand: Congrats to Jonathan Saunders on his appointment at & Other Stories. [Inbox]
Off-White creative director Ib Kamara is no longer the editor-in-chief of Dazed… Hmm, what could be next for him? As I reported in December, there was talk that he might join British Vogue in some capacity. [ WWD]
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Have a great weekend,
Lauren
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