Can lightning be caught in a bottle twice? At Monse, it just might.
On Saturday evening, Laura Kim and Fernando Garcia’s spring runway opened with a deconstructed khaki vest.
Not just any vest, but a sleeveless version of their resort 2025 Criss Cross jacket Michelle Obama wore on the second day of the Democratic National Convention, which set the Internet — and Monse’s sales — on fire.
Former first lady Michelle Obama arrives to speak onstage during the second day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on Aug. 20, 2024 in Chicago.
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“It was capturing lightning in a bottle. It was iconic,” Monse’s chief executive officer Ayesha Ahmad, who joined the company this summer, told WWD backstage without confirming the rumored megawatt sales numbers. “I think it was the combination of Michelle Obama; her speech — because she came in to fight; the armorial, crispness of the jacket, and the fact that the DNC was about Kamala and the energy. That’s why it’s lightning in a bottle, because so many things had to align, and they did. We saw a tremendous, tremendous uptick in sales. To the point where I was, actually, working at night because I was watching the DNC, answering customer service emails because they were flooded.”
“It was the most electric moment in our career,” Garcia added. “It ran like nothing we’ve ever done before; it translated into a very important business for us.”
Back on the runway, the chic topper was styled atop a white lace-trimmed shirtdress with a football-shaped handbag and boat shoes, signaling the collection’s overall “back-to-school” mentality.
“You know, Taylor Swift is always on our minds as she’s a big Oscar girl. It’s a little bit of a blend between rugby, football and rah-rah stripes. Back to school à la Monse,” Garcia said.
Throughout the collection the duo played on classic American sportswear with cheeky riffs on the naughty schoolgirl while intertwining evolutions of their signature Monseisms. For instance, trousers, in denim or chocolate gabardine, with extended high waists; reworked tailoring and shirting with double sleeves, hems and necklines; deconstructed, seamed rugbys; swishy carwash skirts, and undone layered chevron cut satin and lace slipdresses that checked all the boxes.
Sporty striped polos in sheer pastel sequin hues offered a fresh look on the trending preppy trend, as did a one-of–a kind varsity jacket.
“We’re talking about maybe opening a store soon, so then you can control your one-of-a-kinds. I want to do more of it, but we’re just teasing it,” Kim said of the repurposed and recycled vintage style and retail potential.
“I like this, I like this a lot,” actress and comedian Tiffany Haddish exclaimed as a strong selection of sequin embellished evening dresses passed by, before hilariously (and delightfully) emerging from her seat to take a pre-finale lap of the runway herself.