LeFrak City native has hottest brand in international fashion (and it’s affordable)
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LeFrak City residents gather for a Renaissance Faire. Photo via LeFrak City
By David Brand
Solange has one. So do Dua Lipa, AOC and at least a dozen people pre-COVID partying at Nowadays last summer.
They call it the ‘Bushwick Birkin,’ but the hottest item in international fashion was designed by an artist from Queens.
LeFrak City native Telfar Clemens has emerged as one of the world’s most influential fashion designers, with his self-titled brand Telfar producing It Bags and must-have clothing coveted around the globe.
But unlike other cult brands, Clemens’ creations aren’t meant to be exclusive. In fact, Telfar is radically inclusive. The products are gender fluid and often inspired by the New Yorkers who the designer encounters on his daily bike rides.
"We are not about hype and scarcity. We didn't set out to make an impossible to get product. The whole point of our bag is accessibility and community," Telfar writes on its website.
On Aug. 19, Telfar applied that ethos in an unprecedented way. The brand held a 24-hour unlimited online sale — a “Bag Security Program,” in brand parlance — allowing anyone who wanted one of the famous Shopping Bags to get one, guaranteed.
The monochrome, leather bags, each embossed with the brand’s TC logo, went on sale from 9 a.m Aug. 19 to 9 a.m. the next day. Every paying customer will get their bags, likely by mid-January 2021, the company said on Instagram
Telfar bags are priced uniquely low in the world of gotta-have-it fashion. The familiar bags max out at $257, which means you don’t have to be living in an LIC highrise paid for by your parents to score one.
The brand’s slogan captures that spirit of inclusivity:
”Not for You, for Everyone.”
