The Debrief

The Business of Fashion

Welcome to The Debrief, a new weekly podcast from The Business of Fashion, where we go beyond the glossy veneer and unpack our most popular BoF Professional stories. Hosted by BoF correspondents Sheena Butler-Young and Brian Baskin, The Debrief will be your guide into the mega labels, indie upstarts and unforgettable personalities shaping the $2.5 trillion global fashion industry.

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136 episodes
Updated Wednesday

Episodes136

Newest first

Jul 27, 2022 · 24 min
How Skims Took on Victoria’s Secret and Spanx
Kim Kardashian’s ‘solution wear’ line was recently valued at $3.2 billion. BoF correspondent Alexandra Mondalek charts the rise of the brand, and details what challenges lie ahead. Background: Founded in 2019 by Kim...
Jul 20, 2022 · 12 min
Why So Many Athletes Are Launching Fashion Brands
BoF’s Daniel-Yaw Miller unpacks why — and how — sports stars including Russell Westbrook and Megan Rapinoe are running their own labels, with full financial and creative control. Background: Athletes have long been part of the...
Jul 13, 2022 · 23 min
Department Stores Make a Comeback
After a pandemic pivot to e-commerce, many brands are back to working with third-party retailers, this time, with better terms. Background: The wholesale model, while offering exposure and some upfront revenue, did not always have...
Jul 6, 2022 · 27 min
In Activewear, Where Are the White Spaces?
BoF correspondents Chavie Lieber and Daniel-Yaw Miller discuss why fashion brands are making products for sports like pickleball, padel, rugby, boxing and skiing. Background: Two decades ago, Lululemon built its brand...
Jun 29, 2022 · 26 min
Eva Chen on Meta’s Virtual Fashion Experiment
The vice president of fashion and shopping partnerships at Meta and BoF technology correspondent Marc Bain join Lauren Sherman to discuss the company’s new marketplace — which sells digital items from Thom Browne, Balenciaga and Prada — and the...
Jun 22, 2022 · 26 min
Gen-Z’s Great Expectations
BoF’s workplace and talent correspondent Sheena Butler-Young explains why managers in the fashion and beauty industries are struggling to balance their youngest employees’ expectations against the needs of their businesses. Background: The...
Jun 15, 2022 · 19 min
Why Chanel Is Opening Private Boutiques
BoF’s luxury editor Robert Williams offers insight into the surprising news that the mega-label plans to open stores dedicated to serving top customers. Background: As traffic to stores soars, Chanel’s chief financial...
Jun 8, 2022 · 22 min
Is This the Beginning of the End for Leather?
Brands including Stella McCartney, Balenciaga and Hermès are making products from mushroom-based material. BoF’s chief sustainability correspondent Sarah Kent details the forces pushing next-gen fabrics like mycelium leather forward — and whether...
Jun 1, 2022 · 16 min
The Decline of the Skinny Jean
After years of analyst anticipation that the leg-squeezing silhouette would soon go out of style, market research firm NPD Group found sales for the skinny jeans fell behind straight leg jeans in 2021. Skinny jeans are far from dead though — still...
May 25, 2022 · 24 min
How Luxury Woos the World’s Biggest Spenders
BoF’s Chavie Lieber dives into the elaborate and secretive way luxury brands court their high-spending clients with trips to exotic locales and entry to exclusive events. Background: In the midst of a post-Covid luxury...
May 18, 2022 · 20 min
Fashion’s Greenwashing Problem
In a sea of unsubstantiated claims about sustainability, BoF’s Sarah Kent explains why it's so hard to measure impact, and what sort of regulation could be coming for fashion. Background: Concern about the...
May 11, 2022 · 17 min
How Vacation Clothes Became Big Business
BoF’s Tamison O’Connor explains how the fashion industry is betting on resortwear as consumers return to their pre-pandemic lifestyles and travel rebounds. Background: Every spring, top fashion clients, influencers and insiders...
May 4, 2022 · 18 min
Who Is Designing Fashion in the Metaverse?
BoF’s Marc Bain chats with Lauren Sherman about the 3D creators, game designers and NFT experts bringing fashion into the virtual world. Background: A new generation of digital creatives are leading fashion brands into...
Apr 27, 2022 · 18 min
Unpacking Alexander Wang’s Rise, Fall and Attempted Return to Fashion
BoF’s Lauren Sherman and Matthew Schneier, senior writer at New York Magazine and The Cut, discuss the former star designer’s attempted industry re-entry following a slew of sexual assault allegations. Background: ...
Apr 20, 2022 · 17 min
Why Shein Is Valued at $100 Billion
Fast fashion upstart Shein set the industry ablaze this month after reports it was seeking to at a $100 billion valuation, according to Bloomberg. Shein has upended fast fashion by making apparel at jaw-droppingly low price points and gaining market...
Apr 13, 2022 · 1 min
Introducing ‘The Debrief,’ a New Podcast hosted by Lauren Sherman
In this weekly series, BoF’s chief correspondent will go behind the scenes of the $2.5 trillion global fashion industry. Fashion has the ability to move markets, shake up cultural norms and even transform society. But who — and what...

The Debrief

How Skims Took on Victoria’s Secret and Spanx

Why So Many Athletes Are Launching Fashion Brands

Department Stores Make a Comeback

In Activewear, Where Are the White Spaces?

Eva Chen on Meta’s Virtual Fashion Experiment

Gen-Z’s Great Expectations

Why Chanel Is Opening Private Boutiques

Is This the Beginning of the End for Leather?

The Decline of the Skinny Jean

How Luxury Woos the World’s Biggest Spenders

Fashion’s Greenwashing Problem

How Vacation Clothes Became Big Business

Who Is Designing Fashion in the Metaverse?

Unpacking Alexander Wang’s Rise, Fall and Attempted Return to Fashion

Why Shein Is Valued at $100 Billion

Introducing ‘The Debrief,’ a New Podcast hosted by Lauren Sherman