LUAR’s Ana bag
EMCEE Studios is teaming up with buzzed about brands Dion Lee and LUAR for their New York Fashion Week Fall 2023 shows.
The new creator-powered affiliate retail platform, is making its official debut over New York Fashion Week through runway partnerships with Dion Lee on February 10, the first day of the NYFW shows, and LUAR which closes the week on February 15.
EMCEE is setting out to revolutionize the affiliate marketing space, promising to rewrite the rule book on traditional marketing practices for a more authentic, transparent and inclusive approach.
Its social commerce model involves curated, conversion optimized showrooms for influencer creators with one simple, sharable url where followers can shop selected products. According to CEO John Aghayan, commission rates are also substantially higher than competitors.
Aim is to foster relationships between brands and content creators by removing unnecessary steps from the typical affiliate user journey. With its proprietary technology, the platform combines original creator content with brand product details in a one-page shoppable hub, for a more seamless customer experience.
Instagram’s scaling back on its own shopping feature as of last year to focus more on video, certainly opens up opportunities for affiliate platforms to pick up the slack.
According to Aghayan, Dion Lee and LUAR have been selected for their shared vision in reinventing traditional concepts both in terms of aesthetic and core values. In Dion Lee’s case, it was the Australian designer’s overarching themes of renewal and transformation that proved attractive and where LUAR is concerned, it was the designer’s goal to democratize access to fashion.
“Partnering with brands of Dion Lee and LUAR’s magnitude is disruptive self-expression at its finest,” says Aghayan. “At EMCEE – like these brands – we are at the forefront of innovation, so these partnerships truly are a symbolic way for us to kick off and wrap up EMCEE’s first NYFW.”
Behind LUAR is Raul Lopaz, the Dominican-American creative from New York’s Williamsburg, who co-founded cult favorite Hood By Air label with Shayne Oliver in 2005. He launched LUAR in 2017 and scooped Accessories Designer of the Year at the 2022 CFDA Awards.
LUAR’s Ana bag
His breakout style is the boxy Ana bag with its instantly recognizable looped handle and accessible Gen-Z friendly price tag that comes in just shy of $300.
New York based Australian native Dion Lee launched his eponymous brand in 2008 and is known for his combination of fluid day to night silhouettes alongside the corset which has become his signature.
The success of both Dion Lee and Raul Lopaz’s LUAR owes much to celebrity traction on social media. Lee’s fans include Hailey Bieber, Cara Delevingne, Megan Fox and Gigi Hadid who wore one of those signature corsets to celebrate her birthday last year — duly posted and shared via instagram.
“Social media has allowed us to forge relationships with creatives across the globe and share our brand with the widest audience possible,” says a representative from Dion Lee. “It’s also been instrumental to the discovery and building of new relationships and the growth of our community in New York and abroad.”
As for LUAR’s Ana, she has been spotted on the accounts of celebrities including Dua Lipa, Trove, Sivan, Julia Fox and many more.
“LUAR and EMCEE share foundational values of what it means to break down barriers and occupy spaces traditionally reserved for a select few. Our community’s overwhelming support at our past shows has highlighted how limited fashion week can feel to our larger audience – we are hoping to change this,” said LUAR Director of Business Development, Fidel Gomez Torres via email.
“For our AW23 show, we are closing NYFW by extending it over three days of programming, with the goal of democratizing access to fashion week through a variety of initiatives and conversations, showcasing intersectionality between fashion, art, and commerce,” he reavealed. “Given our shared values, it felt right to bring EMCEE into the mix as they understand and speak for the next generation of creatives and retailers.”
The NYFW partnerships see EMCEE curating front-row seats with top influencer creators dressed by Dion Lee and LUAR respectively as well as sponsoring an afterparty. Going forward, both Dion Lee and LUAR will continue their relationship with EMCEE over a period of 12 months, each offering three SKUs in custom colors exclusively for sale on the platform via EMCEE creator influencers.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/stephaniehirschmiller/2023/02/08/affiliate-platform-emcee-launches-at-nyfw/