Tory Burch

Maria Alia. Photo: Morgan Maher for Tory Burch
Invigorated by nostalgia while looking ahead, Tory Burch marked the opening of its new store with an SS22 runway show honoring 20th century sportswear designer Claire McCardell. Strategically located in the heart of Manhattan on Mercer Street, this new boutique symbolizes the American fashion designer’s love for the bustling city. In 2004, she moved to SoHo after college and opened her first boutique not too far from the same street.
Photo: Morgan Maher for Tory Burch
“I could not be more excited about our Mercer Street store,” says Burch. “It is an evolution of our retail aesthetic, and I have loved the creative process, combining a modern space with signature decorative elements and details that are personal to me. The downtown location feels like a homecoming, just a five-minute walk from where we opened our first boutique on Elizabeth Street.”
Photo: Morgan Maher for Tory Burch
Besides the label’s signature clothing, shoes, and handbags, the boutique’s diverse offerings include home goods, new 151 Mercer handbags, as well as limited-edition Lee Radziwill Double Bags, exclusive to this location. They are displayed within elements recalling Burch’s childhood memories, such as the baskets suspended from the ceilings which represent the ones in her Pennsylvanian home growing up.
Photo: Morgan Maher for Tory Burch
For other highlights of the store, Burch enlisted female artists, including Miranda Brooks, who created an outdoor garden space behind the store, and a chandelier suspended in the second-floor shoe salon by sculptor Francesca DiMattio. The brand’s codes – oak, rattan, and brass – have also been reimagined in different finishes throughout the boutique, while the underside of the staircase has been lined with a hand-hammered metalwork Tree of Life to symbolize renewal and growth.
Photo: Morgan Maher for Tory Burch
One of the store’s more stylish visitors, Brooklyn-based Palestinian model Maria Alia recently toured the location, dressed in key pieces from the brand’s FW21 collection. Inspired by the classic New York neighborhoods and the city’s attitude, pieces feature prints that pay tribute to its various cultures in earthy neutral shades with pops of color like red and purple. The collection is created with the foundations of a seasonless wardrobe, with pieces that can be dressed up or down, and styled modestly as shown by Alia, regardless of the time they’re worn in.
Photo: Morgan Maher for Tory Burch
Read Next: 25 Uplifting Spring 2022 Looks from New York Fashion Week

When it comes to mood-boosting fashion, nothing quite gives you ‘get-up-and-go’ quite like a statement print. This summer there’s plenty to choose from, with retro florals, day-glo stripes, patchwork and paisley print all showing up in designers’ collections. Keep it simple and stick to one print or go mix and match prints, colors and textures – creativity (and confidence) is key.
Bold stripes are a summer staple (especially in swimwear) and Etro’s signature paisley print is a wardrobe classic – find it in everything from chic flats to maxi dresses and louche silk pants. The checkerboard trend is still going strong – but with a twist. Swap classic monochrome for colorful squares (Paloma Wool) for an instant twist on the trend. A kaftan is a holiday essential and Tory Burch has one of the best of the season in punchy floral print.
One SS21 collection in particular encapsulated our year-long desire for a vacation: Versace. Vibrant oceanic and tropical digi prints on cocktail dresses and standout blazers were an instant hit and are a must for any resort wardrobe.
We’ve rounded up eight prints – from florals to stripes and spots – to lift your summer spirits…
Read Next: 15 Sustainable Fashion Buys for Summer

Fashion has turned its spotlight on politics, with designers harnessing their power to call attention to social issues.
Chanel Spring/Summer fashion show in Paris. 

The time to remain apolitical or risk losing valued customers is here – and designers around the world are shouting loudly, supporting human rights, and picking political sides. Many brands want to be on what they perceive as the right side of history when it comes to politics. In the run-up to the recent US presidential election, 19 designers – including Vera Wang, Joseph Altuzarra, and Tory Burch – launched the collaborative Believe in Better collection in support of presidential candidate Joe Biden.
Designer Tory Burch wears her Believe in Better, T-shirt. Photo: Supplied

Others have been vocal about social issues such as systemic racism. When the American football player Colin Kaepernick knelt during the US national anthem at the start of his NFL games in 2016, in protest against police brutality and racial inequality, the country erupted into furious debate.
In 2018, Nike followed with an advertising campaign featuring Kaepernick with the text, “Believe in something. Even if it means sacrificing everything.” In response, some Nike fans took to social media with videos of them burning their once-beloved kicks, and the hashtag #BoycottNike began to trend. The brand had transitioned from being not just something to wear, but a way of pledging political allegiance. Others stayed on the sidelines, waiting to see if Nike would come out on top financially. Despite an initial dip in its share price after the campaign was launched, Nike sales increased by more than 30% the following year.
Celebrities like Jennifer Aniston have been encouraging Americans to vote in the recent election.

Protests against long-simmering racial inequality in the US seems to have lit a fuse with brands, precipitated by the killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis in May this year. “Following the death of George Floyd, we saw that the public is not afraid to voice their intolerance toward racism and that set in motion the movements we’ve seen recently to challenge discrimination in all its forms,” says Sanjay Bhandari, chair of Kick It Out, a UK-based organization that fights discrimination in English football. “Brands have been aligning themselves with well-known figures and influencers to show support for the likes of Black Lives Matter, as a way of pledging their solidarity and commitment against racism.”
Celebrities like Vogue US Cover Star Lizzo, have been encouraging Americans to vote in the recent election. 

Support through fashion is apparent in other areas of inequality, too. In 2017, after the rise of the #MeToo movement, designers around the world projected feminism and female empowerment to reflect the sentiment of the era. Actresses wore all-black at the 2018 Golden Globes Awards, Egyptian designer Rana Yousry showcased her Black Rose line at Arab fashion week that same year displaying themes of feminism, strength, and power, and Saudi designer Arwa Al Banawi dressed the Saudi women’s soccer team for the 2019 Global Goals World Cup in Copenhagen.
“Fashion reflects what’s ‘now.’ For it to have power and feel right, it has to speak to what is going on more broadly,” says Dr Rosie Findlay, course leader in fashion cultures at London College of Fashion. But sometimes, brand’s signatures are adopted by less-than-desirable demographics.
In the 90s, the signature Burberry check was associated with football hooligans in Europe, and more recently, a US far-right group appropriated a black and yellow polo shirt by Fred Perry. It’s not the first time the British brand has been commandeered by the far-right – it was a favorite of skinheads in the 60s and 70s, too. Fred Perry quickly withdrew the polo shirt from sale and released a statement disavowing its use by far-right groups, saying, “They have absolutely nothing to do with us, and we are working with our lawyers to pursue any unlawful use of our brand.”
“Some business decisions seem very driven by what is moral and ethical,” says Findlay, citing the example of French brand Maison Cléo. “It is constantly advocating for slow fashion and educating its followers about the unsustainability of the fast-fashion system.” Fashion has always been one way of uniting people, but, Bhandari says, “we need to see more from some brands in terms of their commitment.” He continues, “We also need to see them making a positive contribution to society and their local communities.” In terms of racial inequalities, brands need to be “looking inside their organizations and developing long-term plans for social inclusion and racial equality so that they foster a more inclusive environment and attract a more diverse workforce,” Bhandari says. In an age of such political extremes, it seems fashion, which moves and evolves with the times, must speak louder and be more politically brazen than ever.
Read Next: How Footwear Designer Amina Muaddi Created a Pandemic-Proof Collection
Originally published in the November 2020 issue of Vogue Arabia.