Is Designer Dead? Who Sells Style? Black Athletes vs Actors, Saks Collapse & Resale’s Rise

Is Designer Dead? Ep 15: Designer Collabs, Summer Trends, & WYouth w/ guest Arianna J. Moultrie

In Episode 15 of Is Designer Dead?, we sit down with Arianna J. Moultrie, Creative Director at Alice + Olivia, to discuss her journey from Los Angeles creative to one of fashion's most exciting voices in design today. Known for blending artistry with strategy, Arianna leads concept development and visual storytelling for contemporary collections and high-profile collaborations, including partnerships with Basquiat, Kid Super, Kim Kardashian, and Paris Hilton. Her work has been featured in Vogue, WWD, and other leading fashion publications, with designs carried by premier retailers including Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, and Bloomingdale's. In this conversation, we explore the growing shift toward offline experiences and community-building in fashion, from W's recent Youth event to the rise of designer-retailer collaborations. We also discuss how brands are creating culture beyond social media and what it takes to build meaningful consumer connections today. Plus, we break down some of the biggest Spring/Summer trends, including fringe, scarf dressing, and men's "slutty little glasses." Topics include: • Arianna's path to Creative Director at Alice + Olivia • The evolution of designer collaborations • Why fashion is moving offline • W Youth and the future of fashion communities • Spring/Summer trend forecasting • Fringe, scarf dressing, and men's accessories • Creativity, storytelling, and career growth in fashion About Is Designer Dead? Hosted by Chelsea Jackson, Kris Harvey, and Elaina Joyner, Is Designer Dead? explores the intersection of fashion, finance, and foolishness through conversations about luxury, culture, creativity, and the business behind style. Subscribe for new episodes every week. #IsDesignerDead #FashionPodcast #AriannaMoultrie #AliceAndOlivia #FashionBusiness #DesignerCollaborations #FashionCulture #LuxuryFashion #FashionTrends #CreativeDirector #StyleForecasting IG | @isdesignerdead TikTok | @isdesignerdead YouTube | @IsDesignerDead

Is Designer Dead? Who Sells Style? Black Athletes vs Actors, Saks Collapse & Resale’s Rise

Is  fashion casting Black talent—or typecasting it? This week, we’re asking the question brands don’t want to answer: why are Black athletes and rappers dominating fashion ambassadorships, while Black actors and singers get sidelined? From Future and A$AP Rocky to Kendrick Lamar, the pattern is loud—and the implications are louder. Who do brands actually believe can sell luxury to the Black community? Then in Designers, Deficits & Dividends, we break down the numbers behind the noise. Saks is spiraling toward bankruptcy, Kering and LVMH are sending mixed signals, and somehow Hermès, Coach, and Brunello Cucinelli are thriving. Welcome to the K-shaped economy—where luxury isn’t just splitting, it’s diverging. And if you think resale is slowing down, think again. eBay’s acquisition of Depop and The RealReal surpassing $2B in GMV proves the secondhand market isn’t a trend—it’s infrastructure. We’re also giving the girls (and the legends) their flowers: Carlos Nazario,and Ruth Carter—because real influence doesn’t always come with a campaign. Finally, it’s time for Sew, Show, or Go—from the battle of Bottega designers to the industry’s current power players, we’re deciding who stays, who slays, and who needs to pack it up. Fashion is evolving. The question is…who is it evolving  IG | @isdesignerdead TikTok | @isdesignerdead YouTube | @IsDesignerDead

Is Designer Dead? BHM X NYFW: Olivier's Balmain Era, Sergio's Blue Gown and Brand Overvaluations

Black History Month meets New York Fashion Week — and yes, we’re taking attendance. We kick things off with Designer Dosey Do, breaking down fashion’s latest musical chairs: Olivier Rousteing exiting Balmain, Pieter Mulier entering Versace, and Grace Wales Bonner entering the Hermès menswear conversation. Who’s repositioning? Who’s inheriting pressure? And who’s stepping into a valuation narrative they didn’t ask for? Then it’s time for Runway Read. Sergio Hudson celebrates 10 years — and yes, that blue gown gets its moment. We unpack longevity, power dressing, and what Black excellence looks like on today’s runway. Finally, in Designers, Deficits & Dividends, we get into the Pat McGrath bankruptcy conversation. Was it market reality — or overvaluation mixed with strategic missteps? We’re talking expansion pressure, positioning confusion, and what happens when brand perception outruns operational performance. Because at Is Designer Dead?, we don’t just watch fashion. We analyze it. IG | @isdesignerdead TikTok | @isdesignerdead YouTube | @IsDesignerDead

Is Designer Dead? Ep 8 (Part 2): Old Guard Out, New Guard In, and Red Carpet Foolery With Guest Jérôme Lamaar (Part 2)

In Part 2 of our conversation with Jérôme Lamaar, we zoom out and look at what’s finally happening in fashion right now. After seasons of anticipation, a new wave of designers is actually showing — and the question is whether the industry is ready to support them, or just ready to aestheticize them. We talk about what feels real versus what feels rushed, and why the gap between hype and longevity keeps widening. We also get into modern style wars — from Lindsay Lohan’s recalibrated image to Hailey Bieber’s minimalist dominance — and what these opposing aesthetics say about taste, timing, and control. Is this about personal style, or about who has the better machine behind them? From there, we break down red carpet gimmicks, viral moments that feel engineered, and why so much fashion now reads as strategy first, design second. Are these stunts pushing culture forward, or just keeping the algorithm fed? We wrap with predictions: who we think will last, what aesthetics are peaking, and what the next era of influence might actually reward — originality, restraint, or something else entirely. As always, this isn’t about nostalgia. It’s about paying attention. IG | @isdesignerdead TikTok | @isdesignerdead YouTube | @IsDesignerDead

Is Designer Dead? Ep 8 (Part 1): NYFW, Fashion Tech & Who Decides Fashion’s Future Anyway? — featuring Jérôme Lamaar

From the Bronx to the front row—and he never skipped a step. We sit down with Jérôme Lamaar, the creative who started at Baby Phat at just 15, rose through the ranks, and built a career grounded in culture, instinct, and longevity. Jérôme opens up about his youth in NYC, dressing Andra Day for the Met Gala, recent styling Dennis Rodman , and his unfiltered take on the current state of New York Fashion Week. No fluff. No gatekeeping. Just real perspective. Part 1 is live. IG | @isdesignerdead TikTok | @isdesignerdead YouTube | @IsDesignerDead