Hi everyone! This weekend I had the opportunity to attend New York Fashion Week with the CLC licensing company! I won a contest through the school of Retail at UofSC in December, and it finally came time to go! CLC flew me out, placed me in a hotel and treated me like an absolute queen! They were fabulous hostess', and I cannot wait to share with you all my experiences.
*CLC is a company that works under IMG. They work in multiple areas such as sports, fashion and other event planning.
Link to Blog Post Entry From Competition: Link Here
Let me break it down day by day and share with you all my encounters of the past three days. We worked with brands such as Kyle Cavan, Champion, Corckcicle, Tressemé and more.
Thursday: February 6th, 2020
Today started hectic with lots of flight delays! There was a bad east coast storm, so we were not sure if we were going to make it today. Our flight ended up getting changed from 12:55pm to 2:23pm (not to bad)! We landed in the LGA airport around 4pm, and had a car service take us to the hotel.
Airport Outfit Details:
- Top: Forever 21
- Bottoms: Zara
- Leather Jacket: Anna Craig Boutique
- Shoes: Doc Martens
- Bag: Rebecca Minkoff
We arrived at the Arlo Hotel in Soho, and it was one of the most modern/trendy hotels I have ever stayed in. I highly recommend you stay in this hotel if you desire to stay within the Soho area (also a great central area to stay in while visiting NYC). Some of the details included throughout the hotel was the rooftop lounge, Harold's the restaurant, an outdoor lounge, Dylan's Candy Bar, and multiple private rooms for events.
The only thing we had on the agenda for the night was attending a Mix and Mingle event with all the other schools and employees from 6:30-7:30 pm at the hotel. Lauren and I (Lauren was the other USC applicant who won the contest) enjoyed a relaxing Happy Hour drink at the hotel that goes on every night from 5:30-7pm.
My hotel room was BEAUTIFUL. I stayed on the 10th floor and had an amazing view of the city. We each got our own rooms - so nice!
At the Mix and Mingle event, every school was required to wear and style a piece of gear from their university. It was so interesting to see where everyone was traveling from, and what they had to do to win a spot on this trip (each school had different requirements set by their university). The event had a beautiful charcuterie board spread along with our goodie bags for the next few nights!
Harold's
Outdoor Area
Outfit Details:
- Top: Vintage Store in Five Points in Columbia, SC
- Bottoms: Show Me Your Mumu
- Shoes: Fab'rik Boutique
- Jacket: Anna Craig Boutique
Goodie Bag Details:
- VISA Gift-card for food
- 3 Day Hotel Breakfast tickets
- CorkCickle Water Bottle
- Refreshments
- Lipstick
- Notebook/Pen
- Personalized Business Cards
- Custom Greeting Cards
- Empty Tin Can ready to be filled from Dylan's Candy Bar
After the event, we filled up our Dylan's Candy Bar tins and went to dinner in Little Italy. Lauren and I went to our favorite spot, and than had a relaxing night at the hotel where we hung out in the lounge.
Friday: February 7th, 2020
Today started off bright and early with a fabulous breakfast at the hotel restaurant. We were required to meet in the lobby by 9:30am to start the day (dressed in business casual).
Outfit Details:
- Top: Forever 21
- Blazer: Fab'rik Boutique
- Bottoms: Forever 21
- Shoes: Anna Craig Boutique
We started off the day by going to a Licensee Visit at Kyle Cavan. Kyle Cavan is a college jewelry company that is fairly new in the industry, and is taking a twist on the average College-geared memorable jewelry. This was an interactive panel including multiple participants. The panel was all geared toward college-aged consumers; which I thought was quite interesting and relevant!
Participants:
- Annabel Gatto - Co-Founder of Suitably (DTC brand focused on stylish, but fashionable work wear for the recent grad
- College Coordinator - Rent the Runway
- Woody Hines - CEO of Hillflint
- Kyle Garcia & Elizabeth Shirley - Founder and Co-Founder of KYLE CAVAN
Throughout the 2-hour panel, we had a very relaxed informative session (question/answer based) on the ins & outs of starting a business in the college and fashion space, myth-busters and tips and tricks. It was extremely informative and a great opportunity to network with successful entrepreneurs.
After the panel, we had lunch at a local place in SOHO, and then we headed to the Champion flagship store located nearby. At Champion, the store manager spoke to us about the success of their customization bar and the logistics of their retail store. We were able to customize our own Champion gear at the customization bar and take it home that day!
Stores connected to where we ate lunch
We were free for the rest of the day until our group #UofNYFW dinner from 7-9pm at the hotel restaurant, Harold's.
The weather was AWFUL during this time period (rain, wind and more)! Lauren and I went back to the hotel to change and unwind at the hotel, and then went to our DryBar appointments! I have been wanting to go to DryBar for years now, and today was the day my dream came true! DryBar is a blowout bar that washes, dries, and styles your hair with the option to add multiple treatments and other add-ons. It is $49 (so a tad pricey), but I think it is extremely worth it. We were able to relax, have a drink and listen to music as we got our hair done for the night! For reference, I got "The Mai Tai" style. It definitely looks its best once you let you hair fall for a few hours or even the next day. We attended the DryBar in Tribeca.
Harold's Fries
Banner Outside of Our Hotel !!!
Outfit Details:
- Top: Vestique Boutique
- Dress: Vestique Boutique
- Tights: Target
- Shoes: Fab'rik Boutique
- Belt: Adair Boutique
Dinner was great with everyone as we all caught up on our afternoons and got to know each other more. From dinner, we went to MILK Bar, a well-known dessert place located in multiple areas around New York City. We tried the Birthday Cake and the infamous Milk Bar Ice Cream with the "crunch" and sprinkles. Personally, I was not the biggest fan, but I did try their cookies last trip and they are AMAZING. We went to the one located in West Village.
Saturday: February 8th, 2020
Today was the big day! This was our longest day together as a group, and the day where we got to attend NYFW and go to exclusive Fashion Shows. We met in the lobby at 8:30am and walked over to Spring Studios, where we would be watching the shows.
Outfit Details:
- Jumpsuit: Fab'rik Boutique
- Shoes: Doc Martens
- Jacket: Forever 21
- Hat: Dress Up Boutique
Before our first show (starting at 11am), we sat in the VIP lobby, where we were granted special access due to winning the competition. We spoke, listened and had a Q&A with some of the IMG workers who put on NYFW itself. It was so informative, and yet again, extremely beneficial.
First Show: Claudia Li fashion show
After the first show, we went to Walker's for lunch as a whole group and relaxed until it was time for the next show. Their French Onion Soup was amazing!
Second Show: Private Policy
At this show, I saw the famous make-up YouTuber Patrick Starr! It was pretty cool to see someone who is famous on social media in person, and just another perk of attending these shows!
After the shows, we were granted access to the partnership lobby that include brands such as Tressemé, The Glenlive, Visa, and more. They had a hot chocolate bar, a custom engraving station for flasks, AirPod customization bar and Tressemé offered free hair and makeup services. They truly treated us like loyalty! This just goes to show how the retail industry has strived to give their consumers the ultimate retail experience. These brands want you to remember them whether it be through photo-opps, taking home custom pieces or enjoying sweet-treats such as hot-chocolate.
After the shows were over, we headed back to the hotel to pack and change, because we had an early flight the next day (REALLY EARLY).
Lauren and I made reservations at the famous celebrity restaurant CATCH NYC. Catch NYC is famous for their celebrity sightings, sharable meals and their "Hit Me" cake, that you order when celebrating something special. This restaurant is pricey, but to us, it is worth the experience. The ambience felt exclusive. The service was great, and the food was even better.
We ordered:
- Crispy Shrimp ***
- Crispy Cauliflower ***
- Crispy Brussel Sprouts
- Catch Roll ***
- HellFire Roll
Outfit Details:
- Top: Target
- Jacket: Brandy Melville
We were so exhausted by the end of the night, we came back to the hotel and hung out at the hotel bar for the remainder of the night. The next morning we had to get up at 4:30am to catch our 5:00am ride to the LGA airport.
Our day of travel would start with a 7:20 flight to the ATL airport following a layover to the Columbia airport.
Reflection
This trip was definitely one of the most memorable trips I have ever experienced thus far in New York City. Experiencing NYFW for the first time was an unreal benchmark moment in my life. Ever since I was younger, I have dreamed about going to New York Fashion Week, and when I finally made it, I knew that I was heading in the right direction. Life takes many unexpected turns, but I believe that everything happens for a reason, and when you work towards your dreams hard enough with drive, determination and consistency, everything will fall into place.
I cannot wait to attend more New York Fashion Weeks in the future. Fashion is a place for creativity, personality and networking. I am so lucky to be apart of an ever-changing, forward industry.