Incognito Mode: How It Girl brands like Frankie Shop are making a case for the return of minimalism

Think of the It Girl brands that you’ve known.

Remember in the mid ‘00s, when every girl on street style Instagrams and teen shows were seen wearing in Herve Leger bandage dresses? Or how we immediately ditched that in the later part of the 2010s for the immediately recognizable ruffles found on a Self Portrait dress? Or how – if one turns the clock back a few decades before – we were all fighting to be seen in platform Steve Maddens or gem-encrusted Ed Hardy caps?

That’s always been the draw of an It Girl brand: it’s instantly recognizable from a mile away.

It promises that with one glance at your newly-acquired threads – be it an Isabel Marant wedge sneaker or Juicy Couture velour tracksuit – you can now identify as part of this unofficial gang of cool fashion insiders.

And yet, in 2023, the new wave of It Girl brands are flipping the script on this appeal of recognizability. Peruse the websites of Frankie Shop, A.W.A.K.E. Mode, Toteme, Nanushka or Source Unknown and you’ll be greeted with pages of crisp oversized shirts, slouchy blazers cut with almost quarterback-like shoulder proportions and an endless bevy of wool trousers in different variations of grey.

And these pieces sell fast, too. Frankie Shop’s famous Bea blazer – one that features angular oversized shoulders with an ultra-roomy cut – had to be restocked several times. By the time you’ve seen an Instagram Story from Source Unknown plugging one of its pieces, it would’ve already sold out on its e-commerce site.

These clothes don’t have anything that allows you to instantly clock it, but perhaps that’s the charm. Perhaps in 2023, It Girl brands are all about the incognito status.

Familiarity breeds…popularity?

Perhaps one of the reasons why we are so enamoured with these minimalist-first brands is because of the times we are living in.

If we are to believe that fashion holds up a mirror to society, then what 2023 is reflecting back at us includes an ongoing war, ballooning living costs, and a world that’s just shaking off the dust from a pandemic that stole two years of our lives.

It’s befuddling and even a little nightmarish.

Couple that with the noise that often erupts from the fashion world – from upside-down dresses to waking up one morning only to be told by TikTok that half of your wardrobe is considered ‘out’ of style – and you could probably understand why shoppers these days seek some comfort and familiarity.

Sometimes, that’s what we all need: the knowledge that if you put on a great pair of brown wool-blend slacks that you’ve worn forever, you know you’ll feel confident and look good. Never mind its lack of sparkle, what you want now is longevity.

In the past, being predictable felt like a death sentence for one’s fashion label. Yet in 2023, amidst all the chaos and confusion, being predictable is paying off for these It Girl brands. Fashion is so overwhelming, that the quietness of a navy silk button-down feels groundbreakingly familiar and dependable.

Is this a way of recession-proofing your closet?

Rachelle Goh, a marketing manager who shops religiously from Frankie Shop, seems to think so.

“I’ve stopped buying from splashy brands, because how many times can you get away with wearing a sequined sweater before people start recognizing it?” she tells us. “It doesn’t make sense spending all this money on clothes that are super identifiable, only to be able to wear them three times a year.”

As financial headwinds continue to defy what analysts previously predicted would be an uptick in retail numbers due to consumers “revenge shopping” after emerging from the pandemic, these timeless It Girl brands feel like a sure-win bet.

“Since I chanced upon Frankie Shop through a friend, I have made a conscious effort to pivot my wardrobe towards something more classic. I still have fun through my shoes, bags, and accessories because that’s who I am,” Goh continues. “I spend less now because I know my pieces from Frankie [Shop] can be reworked into a thousand looks. I like the idea that nine months from now, I can still reach into my closet, pull these evergreen things out and love every piece.”

To be fair, this isn’t the first time that fashion brands like Toteme and Frankie Shop are getting their flowers. Back in late ‘00s and amidst the great recession, brands like The Row and Phoebe Philo’s Celine came to the forefront of the garment trade because they offered a kind of ‘quiet luxury’. Sans logomania or embellishments, and with emphasis on practicality and an almost puritanical form, it became the go-to for many of fashion’s insiders because it promised more bang for your precious buck.

Even now, this vein of quiet luxury holds strong, as seen in a classic striped cashmere sweater from Ganni or a long wool vest from Bite Studios

The new codes of workwear

One thing that seems to unite these brands together is their penchant for loose tailoring, relaxed cuts and a slightly androgynous approach to dressing.

As more of us find ourselves back in our pre-pandemic routine of commuting to the office, these brands are offering a kind of two-for-one approach to workwear. It takes the codes that we know – a collar here, a shoulder pad there – and marries it with our newfound love for all things comfy that we’ve grown accustomed to since our days of working from home.

“When my office called us to return to the office, I felt a little bit lost trying to find my usual morning groove,” Alyssa Lee, who works in the financial sector, recounts to us on a phone call. “I used to be able to pick things out really fast, but right after circuit breaker, I found myself fiddling a lot in my old wardrobe of fitted dresses.”

This set Alyssa on a mission to fill her wardrobe with easier stuff, and she found her way to Source Unknown through Instagram. “I missed working in my loose yoga wear,” she said with a laugh. “When I saw this oversized shirt paired with high-waisted pants in their Instagram ad, something about it immediately spoke to me. It felt easy, and still dressed up enough that I can wear it to work.”

Alyssa’s story isn’t just the only one. Since coming out of the pandemic, workplaces have had to shift their attitudes toward what it means to be in a corporate setting, and the attire that we wear has changed as well. Now that we’ve all seen each other in tank tops and gym shorts over Zoom calls, would an oversized blazer lopped over a white tee feel any different when meeting face-to-face?

The thing with these brands is that they offer a base – like a blue-striped shirt – and add a twist. Suddenly, this blue shirt now has pearl buttons or elongated bow ties that drape down to your knees. It promises that even on your laziest of days, you can throw them on and head to the office without raising an eyebrow from HR.

More than just an It Girl brand

Toward the end of our phone call, Alyssa mentions that to her, “these brands aren’t just It Girl brands. They’re not throwaway clothing that you take out for a party and then never wear again. Maybe why so many of us are now seeing value in these brands is because we’ve grown up and out of our fast fashion days and we’ve learnt to appreciate the value of our dollar. We want our money to work harder for us, even when we are investing it in something as transient as fashion.”

Isn’t that a human truth that we all want our money to stretch further?

Sure, It Girls like Tina Leung are wearing it now, but even as the world finds a new brand to fawn over, these contemporary minimalist designers will always find new ways to reinterpret the classics such that we have to have them.

And that’s why they will always have a space in our wardrobes.