Moda Operandi’s Club Moda Reveals 75 Party Ready Pieces for Holiday – WWD

Moda Operandi is ready for the festive holiday season with Club Moda, which launches Thursday.

The team has been working the past nine months in close collaboration with a wide range of international designers for the first-of-its-kind multibranded Club Moda capsule. The range includes 75 party-ready, exclusive pieces for the holiday season from 30 ready-to-wear and accessories brands, including LaQuan Smith, Khaite, Jonathan Simkhai, Gianvito Rossi and Jimmy Choo, as well as emerging talents like 16Arlington, Diotima, Des Phemmes, Del Core, Monot, K.ngsley and Arielle Baron.

The capsule blends Y2K club energy with the iconic attitude of Studio 54, all interpreted through each designer’s DNA and Moda’s distinct point of view. There are skin-baring minidresses, suiting options, elegant and sophisticated offerings, jumpsuits and full maxi-gowns. In footwear and accessories, there are sparkly evening platforms, thigh-high boots with Lucite heels, nail rings, ombré metallic mesh clutches with strass crystal embellishments and satin mini shoulder bags.

Prices range from $350 to $3,600 with fine jewelry pieces up to $5,500.

To develop the capsule, Moda Operandi chief merchandising officer April Hennig, said the team worked with the brands to create mood boards and then presented Moda with sketches and fabrics. The looks are based on what each brand does really well, with Moda’s spin on it. Brands created anywhere from one to 10 looks for the project, and each will do its own manufacturing.

“We tapped a selection of the young, buzzy, independent, emerging talent, of-the-moment and brands that are naturally go-to resources for this type of end use but also have their own, exciting distinct point of view. They’re mostly independent brands from around the world,” Hennig said, and they have representation from such places as Milan, Italy; Istanbul, Turkey; New York; Los Angeles; California; London, England; and Ukraine. “We definitely prioritized diversity and in terms of Black-owned brands we have LaQuan Smith, K.ngsley, Diotima and Aliette.”

Among the offering is a LaQuan Smith sequined minidress for $1,595; Jonathan Simkhai crepe blazer for $695 and boot-cut pants for $495; a Diotima clear crystal mesh midi dress for $1,695; a Des Phemmes embroidered strapless cotton-blend minidress for $1,145; a 16Arllngton Azaleah feather top for $1,700, and an Aya Muse chainlink minidress for $2,150.

Other looks include a Monot corseted crepe jumpsuit for $1,795, Gianvito Rossi embellished suede slingback pumps for $1,345, and Johanna Ortiz metallic leather boots for $950.

With supply chain issues still plaguing the industry Hennig said it was a considerable undertaking to get everything in on time for the Nov. 17 launch. So far, 80 percent is in the distribution center, with a few pieces on their way. All the looks will be featured on the site, and if a style hasn’t arrived yet, it can be preordered and shipped shortly thereafter, she said.

According to Hennig, November is traditionally a tricky time for retailers because the fall product has been on the site and is sometimes picked over. Resort starts shipping in the new year.

“When you want to give your customer fresh new product and have it arrive now, we had to work with the designers off-cadence to make sure it would arrive for this time,” she said. “We told them, ‘Don’t think of this as a holiday capsule. Think of it as event dressing, great party looks that capitalize on the Y2K influence, embracing the post-pandemic freedom of dressing.’ It was less about holiday. We see this as looks girls will pack in their suitcase and take on vacation to a beach party or events and occasions they’ll have throughout the spring. We don’t think it will end after New Year’s.”

Club Moda marks the first in a forthcoming lineup of seasonally relevant, multibrand and multicategory curated capsules, with a different subset of brands each time. For the summer, Hennig said they’re working on Camp Moda, which will feature more all-American recreational looks to wear in places like the Hamptons. The capsule will include nautical and coastal New England elements, and tap into recreational sports like pickle ball and tennis. “It’s fun, apres leisure, country club references,” she said.

Moda Operandi expects these capsules to be semiannual events. The company is also leaning into exclusives as part of its strategy, and there’s a long-lineup of brand specific incoming links that will launch throughout 2023. Moda Operandi just launched Paco Rabanne, and exclusive capsules with Gabriela Hearst and Altuzarra are expected to follow in short order.

The Club Moda capsule, which launches as a digital shopping experience Thursday, is anchored by an editorial campaign shot by photographer Hao Zeng with an accompanying video from director of photography Leo Tzu. On Thursday evening, Moda will celebrate the launch with a takeover of New York City’s The Palace nightclub, transforming it into Club Moda for one night only. Some 250 tastemakers, celebrities, influencers and designers are expected to attend. Key attendees will be dressed in looks from the capsule with photographer Cobrasnake capturing the night.

Club Moda will also have editorial content to bring it to life. “You’ll be able to shop it by brand, by style, and also simultaneously you can shop the whole look book. It’s built out as an editorial experience on the site,” Hennig said.

“It’s extremely special, very fashion forward, it’s the best of the best, and there’s a nice synergy with what [the brands] already doing,” she added. She said she asked the brands, ‘What’s your best iteration you can give us of a party-going outfit?’”

Looking at the Moda Operandi business more broadly, Hennig said trunk shows are still a very important part of the overall business and a significant part of its DNA, representing 25 percent of business. Seventy-five percent of the business is what the company calls the boutique business, which is day-in-day-out e-commerce.

As for how fall business is performing, Hennig said, “Current business is fantastic. It’s been an incredible rebound year for Moda. We have seen a little shift of demand the past couple of months from what we experienced the first half of the year which was so robust. We hit the highest sell-throughs and margins and double-digit increases. That demand tapered a little bit the last couple of months with microeconomic factors such as inflation and the stock market. We’re seeing the top-tier clients taper spending a little bit, but overall, business is really strong.”