Yesterday's Wall Street Journal has an interesting article by Amy Chozick (subscription only, so no link-love) on 66° North, the fashion-forward, cold-weather clothing company based in Iceland (described as "Prada meets Patagonia"), and the efforts of one Sharon Price to introduce the brand to the U.S. over the last two years.
It's interesting to me for three reasons:
First, Price's success to date--although somewhat limited--is just more support for Virginia Postrel's thesis on the importance of style. In Chozick's article, retail analyst Marshal Cohen initially expresses skepticism about 66° North: "The last thing the world needs is another high-end outdoor apparel line." But then he softens: "Iceland gives consumers something different." Exactly! Very few products are needed; the ones that succeed are wanted. And well-designed, stylish clothing that's different is most definitely wanted.
A second, related issue is the challenge faced by a stylish brand that's trying to go mainstream--or in this case, at least break out of boutiques and get into major retailers. Chozick quotes James Mendolia from the Parsons School of Design: "Once a retailer has defined cool to the masses, it's no longer cool, and it's on to the next thing." This is the traditional, fashion-industry, design-school view of the world, and from that limited perspective, Margolia's right. When you and I and the rest of the hoi polloi start buying 66° North, it's all over--Margolia wouldn't be caught dead in it.
But what Postrel's talking about, and what I think Price is onto, is the idea that style is no longer about keeping one step ahead of the masses. That's just old-school elitism--the rich need to keep the rest of us out of their gated communities to feel rich--and that's fine. But style today is about everyone having access, at every price point. Style for everyone!
And third, Ms. Price "had no fashion or retail experience." She just saw 66° North duds on a family trip to Iceland, decided it would sell in the States, and jumped into the clothing business. She's clearly no babe in the woods, with an MBA and a background in real estate, and she also seems to have some significant resources at her disposal, sporting a "large yellow diamond ring"--and face it, only rich people vacation in Iceland.
But my point is that Price's eye for distinctive style is her key entrepreneurial asset. How many of us see something and think, "Wow, that [fill in the blank] looks great!" Well, 999 times out of 1,000, a thought like that isn't enough to build a business around--but then there's that one time. It's inspiring.
