This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Miami (OH) chapter.
“I don’t think about it in terms of being a woman. Being gracious, attentive, curious, [and] interested are requirements for everyone,” Jenna Lyons, J.Crew’s President and Executive Creative Director, told HuffPost Women last year.
While flawlessly taking menswear and making it everyday women’s wear, she has earned respect as one of the top businesswomen in America. Lyons frequently flaunts oversized glasses and mismatched patterns, gradually adding these personal touches to the J.Crew Collection. The brand is known for its timeless pieces that can be put together to result in classic, conservative ensembles, as well as edgier and eclectic designs. However, the edge in some of the looks seems to be throwing off longtime fans.
In an interview with Elle Magazine from September 2013, Lyons said, “We have online photos, the style guide, the show—you can deconstruct all of these pieces, and they’re all truly classic wearable pieces, it’s only how they’re put together that’s different. And that’s just a suggestion to our customer. We’re saying, ‘This is our idea. This is a new way to do something.’ And I think it’s really still J.Crew at its heart.”
Lyons began with the company in 1990 as a junior designer, “lived to tell” about the survival of the company when it was going down around the millennium, and worked with CEO Mickey Drexler in 2003 to build the brand back up. Last year she reported a 20 percent increase in sales, ($2.2 billion to be exact!) and turned Madewell into a national success. This year, J.Crew will even be heading across the pond to open a store in London.
Madewell, J. Crew’s moodier sister company, plays up their designs for fall with more leather, distressed but well-made jeans, jumpsuits, checkered shoes, and black on black flair. The Fall 2013 Lookbook showcases styles for women, embracing “the bad boy we all hate to love look.”
Copying some of the bad boy designs, J.Crew’s fall line features leather sleeves, a camouflage vest, and men’s dress shoe inspired flats and boots all of which add to a dark, yet refreshing tone.
With the spring line already being revealed, shoppers can expect this edge to blossom in the season of renewal!
Above is a peek at J. Crew’s spring 2014 collection.