Sportswear is the American contribution to how the world dresses, and it has nothing to do with sport. It means separates: clothes built to be recombined for a working day rather than staged for an occasion. Europe organised fashion around the couture house and the single designed look. America organised it around the jacket you can wear to three different things and the swimsuit that holds its shape. Norma Kamali has been designing in New York on exactly that logic since the late 1960s, and the sleeping bag coat she cut in 1973 is still in her collection.

Luxury Handbags carries 22 American houses, among them The Row, Khaite, Oscar de la Renta, Brandon Maxwell, Norma Kamali, Veronica Beard, Amiri and David Yurman. The expensive end of the sportswear idea is what most of them are selling. The Row, founded by Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen in 2006, works in heavy cashmere and exact proportion with nothing on the outside to identify it. Khaite, which Catherine Holstein started in 2016, sharpens the same instinct. Adam Lippes and Gabriela Hearst, who was born in Uruguay and runs her house from New York, both make the case for expensive plainness. The Frankie Shop, opened on New York’s Lower East Side in 2014 by the French born Gaëlle Drevet, turned the oversized blazer into a uniform and now trades from New York and Paris. Amiri works in distressed denim and rock references out of Los Angeles, and Cult Gaia in sculptural pieces like the bamboo Ark bag.

Evening is the tradition that never accepted the premise. Oscar de la Renta, founded in 1965 and designed since 2016 by Laura Kim and Fernando Garcia, builds the gown as a made object. Brandon Maxwell came to his own label in 2015 after working as Lady Gaga’s fashion director. Markarian works made to order from a Manhattan atelier, and Sergio Hudson builds his eveningwear on tailoring.

21 American Houses

Frequently asked questions

Which American designers does Luxury Handbags carry?

Luxury Handbags carries 22 American houses. New York holds most of them: The Row, Khaite, Gabriela Hearst, Adam Lippes and The Frankie Shop in the minimal register, Norma Kamali, Veronica Beard, LaPointe and Mara Hoffman across sportswear and separates, and Oscar de la Renta, Brandon Maxwell, Markarian and Sergio Hudson for evening. Amiri and Cult Gaia design from Los Angeles. Accessories come from David Yurman in jewellery, Judith Leiber in evening bags, Jennifer Behr in headpieces, B-Low The Belt in belts and Tonya Hawkes in handbags made in Italy. Alexandra Pijut and Madeleine Simon complete the 22.

What is American sportswear?

Sportswear in the American sense means separates designed to be recombined for daily wear. It is not clothing for playing sport, and it is not clothing for an occasion. It is the tradition that produced the American wardrobe: the blazer, the trouser, the shirt, the swimsuit. Norma Kamali has worked in it in New York since the late 1960s. The Row, Khaite, Gabriela Hearst and The Frankie Shop are all working the same idea at a higher price.

Which American designers are best for red carpet and eveningwear?

Oscar de la Renta has cut American evening dresses since 1965 and is now designed by Laura Kim and Fernando Garcia. Brandon Maxwell founded his label in 2015 after working as Lady Gaga’s fashion director. Markarian, founded by Alexandra O’Neill in 2017, dressed Jill Biden for the 2021 presidential inauguration. Sergio Hudson dressed Michelle Obama the same day.

What size will an American label be at Luxury Shoes ?

Luxury Handbags lists American houses on the UK ladder, which runs four numbers above the US one. A US 4 shows as UK 8, a US 6 as UK 10 and a US 8 as UK 12. Letter sizing is left as the house cut it, and country of origin is stated on every product page.

What is New York minimalism?

A proportion led approach that keeps logos off the outside of the clothes. The Row, founded by Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen in 2006, is the clearest example, working in cashmere and considered volume. Khaite, started by Catherine Holstein in 2016, sharpens it. Adam Lippes, Gabriela Hearst and The Frankie Shop work in adjacent registers. It is the sportswear tradition with the price and the fabric moved up, not a break from it.