Whatever Michelle Obama wears, the fashion flock is aflutter. Last weekend, she wore a Michael Kors bonded jersey black tank dress to the commencement ceremonies at the University of California-Merced. A few hours later, the sartorial selection was reported in every detail on
Mrs-O.org, the Web site devoted to the first lady's style.
But is her influence enough to get women to buy? The fashionable first lady, who may wear an $1,800 Kors dress one day and a $40 from H&M the next, is closely observed, but Women's Wear Daily says the impact Obama has had on the bottom line for retailers and designers is "both a little and a lot."
High-end, but relatively unknown designers such as Jason Wu, Thakoon Panichgul, Maria Pinto and Peter Soronen have become household names since Obama has worn their clothes in the past year, but the impact on their business has been "less than spectacular," the trade journal reports.
"There has been a huge interest in special orders, which honestly has helped maintain a business in this gloomy time," Soronen told Women's Wear Daily. The dresses he designed that she selected include the custom-made red dress she wore to the Alfalfa Club dinner in March; the sequined gown she wore to the Governor's Ball, and the floral dress she wore Easter Sunday.
Soronen said custom orders make up a large percentage of his business but major retailers have not yet expressed interest in buying his entire collection. Meanwhile, J. Crew is probably the best known of the mainstream retailers Obama seems to favor. The $298 white-beaded cardigan with all-over silvery sequins that she wore in Europe immediately sold out online and is now on back order, according to the company's creative director Jenna Lyons. The cardigan is no longer offered on the site. "We didn't know she was going to be wearing it, so we only had 20 pieces left, and the demand was obviously bigger than that," said Lyons, who said Obama buys her J. Crew pieces without the company's knowledge.
