The New Garde with Alyssa Vingan

The stateside skincare industry is more saturated than ever, but there are some key players who got in on the ground floor and aren’t simply riding out the trend. Sofie Pavitt, founder of Sofie Pavitt Face and owner of the results-driven Sofie Pavitt Skincare Studio in Chinatown, is one of these people. After building a promising career in accessories design working for brands like Abercrombie & Fitch, Gap, Tory Burch, and Michael Kors, she pivoted in her 30s to pursue her love of skincare, enrolling in school and training to be an aesthetician while keeping a full-time fashion job. Fast-forward to today, and she’s developed a tightly edited line of skincare products that recently launched in Sephora, positioning her among the beauty industry big dogs.

Tune in to hear about Sofie’s fascinating journey, including how she got recruited by Abercrombie right out of college in the UK; how trips to Seoul several times a year for her accessories design job helped her fall in love with skincare culture; the insane budgets fashion companies had 20 years ago; what it was like going back to school and starting a whole new career as an adult; how giving virtual skincare consults during the pandemic was a lightbulb moment for her; why “acne positivity” is a scam; how a DM from Zendaya in late 2020 snowballed her career as an aesthetician; whether beauty people are nicer than fashion people; the process of getting your product into Sephora; why personal brands are more important than ever because people want to feel connected to the products they buy; realizing that you can train technique but you can’t train kindness or empathy; why sometimes it’s valuable working for free, and much more.

This episode was recorded in the podcast studio at The SQ @ 205 Hudson.

For the final episode of the year, Alyssa answers your burning questions about life, work, fashion, media, divorce, dating, the future of The New Garde, and much more. See y'all in 2025!

As we approach the end of what feels like the longest year on record, Alyssa sits down with fashion writer Alexandra Hildreth to discuss the many highs and lows of the past 12 months in fashion. Topics include, but are not limited to: trad wives, bag charms, mall brands, SKIMS, cowboys, the TikTok ban, designer musical chairs, boho chic, the Galliano comeback, the death of personal style, the Chanel job, brat, print magazines, man-on-the-street style interviews, underconsumption-core, and blogger discourse déjà vu. Enjoy!

Holiday shopping season is in full swing! Ahead of the onslaught of Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales, Alyssa sat down with Nicola Fumo, host of the Attention Recession podcast and a senior commerce editor at People, for a conversation on the state of commerce content, from gift guides to Amazon Live. Tune in for an entertaining explainer on all things affiliate, as well as Nicola’s insights on why data-driven gift guides have replaced vibes-based ones; the pressure publishers are under to hit their story and revenue quotas during the holiday season; the disclosure conundrum when it comes to affiliate revenue; the evolution of the market editor as a career; how culture has arrived back at QVC and we’re all infomercial stars now; dealing with choice paralysis and why being a smart consumer is crucial; the experience of shopping on TikTok vs. on Instagram; how Amazon Live has become an additional platform for Bravolebrity drama and red carpets; the “holiday sale haul” content genre and the SSENSE sale becoming a meme; what makes a gift guide stand out in a crowd of clickbait; gift guides as voyeurism; and why personal recommendation content is having a breakthrough moment as an escape from the algorithm-based internet.

While it seems like everyone’s getting into the vintage game right now, few players have the experience and sharp point of view to set them apart in a crowded landscape and keep them in it for the long haul. This week, Alyssa sits down with Kathleen Sorbara, owner of Sorbara’s New York (formerly Chickee’s Vintage), to learn how she’s succeeded in the wild world of brick-and-mortar retail — an operation that evolved from selling a curation of vintage pieces on the side of the road. Tune in to hear about how Kathleen’s career journey began by sending an audition tape into an MTV modeling reality show and getting signed; how she navigated being a teenager in an adult world while climbing the modeling ranks; how being around clothing, art directors, creatives, and stylists on modeling jobs became an education on fashion and vintage; learning to run a retail store with no retail experience; navigating the highs and lows of the vintage trend cycle; how the aesthetic of her buy changes over time; how she stays agile and innovative to stand out in the vintage space; what happens when IG fan pages drive people to the store after a celebrity like Harry Styles is spotted shopping; honing her taste and getting inspiration from going to the ballet and other iconic New York programming (as well as from the retirement community her Florida hometown); recounting brick-and-mortar horror stories; learning that “no” is a full sentence; building a booming men’s business by having cute girls sell menswear to guys who were confused about fashion; and why always thinking about the next thing is crucial to avoid becoming stagnant or stale.

This episode was recorded in the podcast studio at The SQ @ 205 Hudson.

If you’re a follower of fashion, you’ve surely felt the influence of sports on the industry steadily increase over the past several years. This week, Alyssa is joined by Madeline Hill, author of the Impersonal Foul newsletter and co-host of The Sports Gossip Show podcast, to discuss the flourishing relationship between fashion and sport, and how they sit at the intersection of many pop culture interests. Tune in to hear Madeline’s lore as a teen model and a key player on Fashion Twitter, as well as her insights on how celebrity courtside culture, Instagram mood boards, and athlete off-duty style have brought sports to a wider audience; what The Cut launching a sports vertical and CR Fashion Book announcing a mysterious sports venture for 2025 signal for fashion media; why so many brands have locked into tennis culture, even before the release of Challengers; how F1 has become a tentpole event akin to Coachella or Art Basel for fashion and beauty brands, and what its 10-year deal with LVMH could bring; what to expect from Lewis Hamilton co-hosting the Met Gala in 2025 with LeBron James as an honorary chair; the extremely chic LVMH Olympics sponsorship; how TikTok is driving sports-heavy fashion trends like tenniscore, blokecore/blokette, motorcore, golfcore, and balletcore across the globe (and onto the runways); the evolution of athletes as influencers and the types of brands getting into athlete sponsorships; the impact of a new era of WAGS and athletes in public relationships exemplified by Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce, as well as fashion influencers like Alix Earle, Morgan Riddle, and Paige Lorenze bringing a new female viewership to sports; and what opportunities the fashion and beauty industries can glean from this rapidly growing audience of sports fans.

All hail the queen! This week, Alyssa sits down with beloved publicist, consultant, and co-founder of the Black in Fashion Council, Sandrine Charles, to get the inspiring story behind her rise up the industry ranks, and what led her to eventually open her own bicoastal agency, Sandrine Charles Consulting, eight years ago. Tune in to get Sandrine’s insights on the importance of having people who champion you in the workplace; why you should always “take the best and forget the rest”; how she found her niche in working on fashion collaborations; what it was like to be one of the only women doing PR in the menswear space; working with brands as they grow versus when they’re already established; working with streetwear brands before the fashion establishment took them seriously; helping to launch KITH and Noah into the stratosphere; how pitching has changed now that the editorial landscape is so different; the beauty in being a cheerleader for your peers; why building solid relationships with people is crucial and the value that comes with being vulnerable; what inspired her to start the Black in Fashion Council with her co-founder, Lindsay Peoples; knowing exactly what you bring to the table and conducting yourself accordingly; why it’s OK to stay private and get off the hamster wheel sometimes; and standing firm in the belief that if you’re doing genuine, good work, people will support it.

It’s been an incredibly fun year for pop music, and the same can be said about the fashion that’s come along with it. This week, Alyssa sits down with Brittany Spanos, a senior writer at Rolling Stone and pop connoisseur, to discuss how the newest names on the scene are using aesthetics strategically to brand themselves and introduce their personas to the world. The ladies touch on the biggest breakout talents of 2024, particularly Sabrina Carpenter, Addison Rae, Chappell Roan, Tate McRae, and brat-era Charli XCX, and how they all (like the pop stars who came before them) use fashion to build their identities and create their narratives. Tune in for an in-depth discussion on this and much more, including Brittany’s thoughts on the smart ways that Carpenter, Rae, and Olivia Rodrigo are subtly introducing retro pop culture references to a new generation; why Rae’s slightly weird creative direction led by Mel Ottenberg is so genius; who are the best pop star/stylist pairings in the game right now; how we’ve reached Peak Britney Spears reference over the past year and why it’s getting out of hand; why the best pop stars are embracing pastiche at a time when fans are exhausted by repetitive references; what the future might hold for pop acts designing collections with luxury fashion brands, like Harry Styles for Gucci or Dua Lipa for Versace; and what could be the next big avant-garde pop star/fashion designer partnership on the level of Lady Gaga and Alexander McQueen.

This episode was recorded in the podcast studio at The SQ @ 205 Hudson.

How will people pay homage to a new generation of red carpet stars in the future if their fashion choices consistently reference the past? This week, Alyssa is joined by Emily Kirkpatrick of I <3 Mess in an attempt to tackle this question at the midpoint of the 2024-2025 awards season. Tune in to hear the ladies discuss fashion’s big problem right now in terms of moving forward; how pulling museum-caliber vintage became the ultimate sartorial flex; when a red carpet tribute turns from a sweet wink or nod into a crutch; the feedback loop between the way celebrities dress and the way media covers it; what the future of getting dressed looks like when we’re so busy rehashing the aughts and doing retro throwbacks; how young Hollywood is underestimating fashion’s ability to help a new talent establish a brand identity and make a big personal statement; why risk-averse celebrities would rather wear something safe from the archives than opt for a polarizing look that creates enough conversation to become iconic years later; why celebrities need their own breakout fashion moments early in their careers, even if they’re bad; when press junket theme dressing goes too far; and whether we’re in a drought of red carpet looks that we’ll be talking about and referencing 20 years from now.

If you’ve ever wanted to get to know your favorite girl from the internet, then this is the episode for you! This week, Alyssa sits down with Marta Freedman — the magical mind behind Hot Girls Eating Pizza and Air Milkshake, as well as the co-founder of Dieux and Angel Therapy — to learn all about her entrepreneurship journey and the wisdom she’s picked up along the way. Tune in to hear Marta discuss what MySpace taught her about building connections by being authentic online and having that resonate with other people; how starting Hot Girls Eating Pizza to meet other young adults grieving the loss of a parent was a crash course in establishing community on social media; how she realized early on that Instagram was a tool for world-building and honed that skill; why throwing themed parties and believing in her own ideas were crucial in expressing her creativity; how she leveraged her community to work with brands; the pros and cons of moonlighting as an influencer and being able to monetize your following; the power that comes with staying true to who you are; why entrepreneurship is not for the faint of heart; how to find a work-life balance when you work for yourself; why softness is power and there’s no shame in vulnerability; the importance of staying in alignment, being guided by intuition, and being your own advocate; and why you should invest in people who invest in you.

Another fashion month has come and gone, which means we have four-plus weeks of new collections from New York, London, Milan, and Paris to unpack. This week, Alyssa is joined by her longtime friend, colleague, and former fashion month travel buddy Tyler McCall for a delightfully unhinged recap of the Spring/Summer 2025 shows. While it was impossible to cover every high and low (Alyssa didn’t even mention Bella Hadid’s return to the runway at Saint Laurent, which is extremely out of character), the ladies touch upon the season’s biggest topics of conversation, from the Substack discourse déjà vu to the vacant Chanel job. Tune in to hear their unfiltered takes on the most effective fashion week coverage; which brands are nailing their social media and storytelling strategies; whether we’ve reached Peak Tiny Mic; why Alessandro Michele’s comeback at Valentino is so exciting; the season’s new nepo babies; why Jonathan Anderson and Miuccia Prada are still in leagues of their own; what happened to brands having a point of view; how to put together an interesting front row; runway stunts done well and those gone awry; the most FOMO-inducing moments of the month and, inversely, the most cringe; and whether it all boils down to the fact that people just want to feel something.

The New Garde has made it to 20 episodes! To celebrate, Alyssa turns her interview questions on herself, getting candid about the decade-plus she’s spent working in fashion. Tune in to find out how she channelled her dream of becoming an MTV VJ — a gig she learned about while watching Virginia Beach hometown heroes like Missy Elliott and Pharrell on TRL — into a climb up the masthead that started around the same time “The Hills” and The Devil Wears Prada put this career path in the pop cultural spotlight.

Fashion is in the midst of mall madness! Alyssa is joined by Casey Lewis, founder of the After School newsletter and Gen Z consumer trends expert, to discuss the rebranding and reinvigoration of the stores they grew up shopping at their local suburban malls, including J.Crew, Abercrombie, Hollister, Gap, Old Navy, Limited Too, Claire’s, Victoria’s Secret, and more. Tune in for a lively, winding discussion and Casey’s insights on how TikTok haul culture is driving Gen Z to the mall; why a marketer’s job is so difficult right now (especially for mall brands) and how to successfully capitalize on a moment; the exciting new energy coming from J.Crew’s editorial and social media output; the frenzy surrounding the Gap x DÔEN, Gap x Madhappy, and J.Crew x Maryam Nassir Zadeh collaborations; a scene report from the Old Navy x The Cut Fashion Week party at Webster Hall; how mall brands are engaging with culture in a way they haven’t previously; the halcyon days of Target and H&M designer collaborations and whether we’ll ever get back there; why the Zac Posen era at Gap Inc. feels so promising; whether millennial icons like Alexa Chung (who just partnered with Madewell again after 14 years) and the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show can truly excite a new generation; the Gap Fall 2024 dance commercial featuring Troye Sivan really resonating on TikTok; Tyla being the ticket to Gen Z for both Gap and Victoria’s Secret; the Hollister viral babydoll shirt; Abercrombie’s fascinating success among elder Gen Zs and younger millennials; the Limited Too comeback and why the brand’s catalogs are selling for $150 on Etsy; the renaissance of mall-favorite labels Tory Burch and Coach; and whether this mall mania is simply a result of the Y2K nostalgia wave that fashion can’t seem to escape.

What better way to celebrate the start of Milan Fashion Week than to sit down with everyone’s favorite expat, Jenny Walton! The illustrator, designer, painter, Vogue vintage columnist, and author of the popular JENNY SAIS QUOI Substack moved her entire life to Italy a couple of years ago — before she learned how to speak Italian — and is proof that being consistent, kind, and true to yourself can pay dividends, even though it comes with plenty of challenges. This week, Jenny shares how she went from making her own clothes in high school and watching Project Runway with her dad, to posting her illustrations on Instagram and turning her passions into a full-fledged career. Tune in to get inspired by Jenny’s journey and her insights on the lifelong process of honing your taste, getting disillusioned with the realities of working in a corporate fashion environment, escaping the millennial mindset that everything has to be “perfect,” collecting vintage Prada, learning that success in the industry isn’t linear, why having a distinct point of view is crucial, how she handles being an introvert with a front-facing, extroverted job, why she still freezes up when getting her photo taken, moving on when something no longer feels right, being unafraid to pivot, make mistakes, and try new things, building trust with your audience, setting boundaries, how to navigate people coming into your life and misguiding you, making new friends and finding community in your 30s, starting over after a toxic relationship, the importance of being present, and so much more.

Life with millions of followers might not be as aspirational as it appears. This week, Alyssa sits down with Rebecca Jennings, a senior correspondent at Vox who covers internet culture and the creator economy, to discuss the future of influencing as a career, as well as the cautionary tale of blowing up on social media and trying to monetize your existence in every possible way. As the fashion industry experiences a hard pivot from professional journalists and editors to influencers (with people circumventing former “dream jobs” to cut out the middlemen), it raises the question: Is it still possible to break out as a mega influencer on an existing platform like TikTok, YouTube, or Instagram? And, if you do, will you be at the mercy of the algorithm and entitled, parasocial weirdos forever? Tune in for Rebecca’s insights on why being an influencer is a less appealing job than it once was, what happens when a content format loses its novelty or when your followers turn on you, whether an influencer can ever really get cancelled in 2024, the niche-ification of fashion influencers, the evolution of the influencer snark subreddits, the danger that comes with being inauthentic or dishonest on your platform, why the relationship that audiences demand to have with the people they follow feels increasingly sinister, the pros and cons of starting a brand based on your following alone, why the age of the editor-turned-influencer is just getting started, what brands dependent on influencer partnerships will do now that the algorithm is shot, whether the tide is turning on blatant consumerism online, and what the fate of fashion influencing looks like for the next generation. 

New York Fashion Week is upon us! To kick off the Spring 2025 season, Alyssa sits down with one of the city’s most prolific fashion writers, Emilia Petrarca, whose popular shopping newsletter, Shop Rat, turns a year old this month. Emilia gives a play-by-play of her climb up the masthead — which involves stints at W Magazine and New York Magazine’s The Cut — and shares the most important lessons she’s learned along the way, including the realizations that there’s no such thing as a “dream job” anymore, and the career path promised in The Devil Wears Prada is obsolete in today’s media landscape. Tune in to find out how she pioneered the nepo baby beat, why a story about Paris Hilton changed the trajectory of her career, how she learned to follow her instincts, hone her voice, and go with her gut, what it was like to attend runway shows alongside Cathy Horyn, why getting offline and going outside are crucial for creativity, the most important (and fun!) parts of reporting from Fashion Month, how she decided it was time to bet on herself and do her own thing, the ups and downs of navigating freelance life while starting a publication from scratch, how to know you have a hit story on your hands, the power of saying “no,” what’s in store for year two of Shop Rat, and so much more.

CW: This episode contains discussion of disordered eating, body image, and weight loss.

If you’ve spent any amount of time scrolling TikTok or X (formerly known as Twitter) over the last several months, you’ve likely come across some version of “thinspo” — whether in the form of low-calorie “What I Eat in a Day” videos or before-and-after weight loss photos — even if you’re not seeking it out. Because we’re at the mercy of the algorithm, this imagery is almost impossible to avoid, which is dangerous for people of all ages. Ruthie Friedlander, the founder of At Large Agency and co-founder of The Chain — a non-profit organization that provides peer support for folks working in the fashion and entertainment industries who are struggling with or recovering from an eating disorder — drops by this week to discuss the reemergence of ED culture on the internet, on the runway, and in media. Tune in for Ruthie’s insights on what it’s like to work in fashion while in active eating disorder recovery, how seeing this imagery consistently can negatively affect your psyche and how you feel about yourself, why marketing buzzwords like “detox” and “clean” are harmful, how to tell when you’re seeing ED behavior hidden under the guise of “wellness,” whether brands and marketers have a responsibility for the images that are projected out to their customers via social media, why Ozempic has become normalized so quickly in the entertainment community and beyond, and where you can turn for help if you or a loved one is struggling with the onslaught of pro-ED content online.

On the eve of the season four premiere of “Emily in Paris” — and on the heels of the just wrapped Paris Olympics — Alyssa is joined by writer Marisa Meltzer, whose forthcoming book Non Moi Plus explores the life and times of Jane Birkin, to unpack the enduring mystique (and myth) of French girl style. An unabashed Francophile, Marisa goes long on the international cult of personality of the “French girl,” her firsthand fashion observations from a months-long reporting trip to Paris, why so many icons of Parisian style (including Jane Birkin) are expats, the lore of the Birkin bag, the French connection to indie sleaze, the unmatched magic of the French pharmacy, the deluge of fashion and beauty brands started by French influencers, the idea of the “European Summer” that’s sold to us on social media and its effect on trends, shopping in Paris vs. shopping in New York, French “It” girls through the generations, what she’s looking forward to from the Paris runways during fashion month, and her mission to bring Birkin’s legacy to life beyond Instagram moodboards. 

Have you ever wondered why there are 8,000 trends at any given time? It’s because trends are extremely profitable! This week, Alyssa is joined by Amanda Mull, senior reporter at Bloomberg Businessweek and consumer culture expert, to unpack the Trend Story Industrial Complex that drives fashion and beauty media. Tune in for Amanda’s fascinating insights on the role of the press in inducing demand for trendy items, how the explosion of both paparazzi photos and fast fashion in the mid-2000s marked a turning point for the traditional trend cycle, why a lack of innovation has led to a rapid ramp-up of trend media, whether we’re approaching critical mass for crowdsourcing trend ideas from TikTok, how influencers have become assignment editors for modern trend stories, why digital media has an incentive to produce recommendation and shopping content in general (thanks in large part to affiliate links), whether the tide is turning and people feel like they’re being pressed to buy too many products, Gen Z’s fraught relationship with consumption (specifically, the contradiction between their beliefs and their behavior when it comes to shopping), the dangers of young people thinking about culture as a marketing exercise, how the luxury game has become more like the fast fashion game over the past two decades, and what could happen if we no longer have new, creative ideas to feed the increasingly sped up consumer machine. 

If you’ve felt awash in a sea of Bottega Veneta Andiamo bags and Alaïa mesh ballerina flats, you are not alone. This week, Alyssa is joined by fashion writer Alexandra Hildreth to go deep into the world of dupe culture — on the For You Page and beyond. Alex helps break down the bleak vibes of Dupe TikTok, how we’re increasingly approaching our lives as content (and therefore must constantly feed the beast), the proliferation of contextless, algorithmic aesthetics, dupes vs. counterfeits, the collective mania to participate in a microtrend before the next one comes along, the general lack of concern for individuality and longevity among consumers, the sustainability problem, the natural evolution of the “look for less” recommendation structure, and whether we’ll ever be able to escape the need for instant gratification while shopping.