These Are the Hottest Fashion Buys of 2018… So Far
When it comes to fashion trends, the runways only tell a part of the story. To uncover what consumers are actually going gaga for IRL, it’s all about mining the data: And that’s where global search engine Lyst comes in. The fashion search platform recently released their latest installment of The Lyst Index, a quarterly report that ranks the most popular brands and products in fashion by analyzing the online shopping behavior of more than five million peeps a month. From the searches, browses, and purchases of those consumers across 12,000 brands and stores across the web, the folks at Lyst were able to deduce what labels and specific items are the hottest in 2018 so far, and a few of them will have you saying “Who knew?”
1. The “Gucci Gang” is growing. The high-end label beat out Balenciaga for the most-wanted brand, with Gucci accessories hitting the number one spot for men and women. The most-coveted among said accessories? The Gucci Leather Belt With Double G Buckle ($350) that has remained in the Lyst Index’s top product lists for a full year and drives more than one million searches a month worldwide. That’s a whole lot of waist cinchers, people.
2. Off-White is on fire. The Virgil Abloh-helmed label Off-White took the number two spot for hottest brand in the second quarter of 2018, no doubt propelled by his debut as artistic director for Louis Vuitton menswear. Collaborations with Converse and Nike certainly also helped turn Abloh and his brand into a household name. Ain’t no stopping him now. (Photo by Kristy Sparow/Getty Images)
3. Nike is just doing it. Speaking of Nike, the O.G. of athletic labels rose 11 spots to snag the only sportswear brand slot in the top 10. According to Lyst, “Shares in the sportswear giant have hit record highs as digital revenue continues to rise.” With the Anna Wintour-inspired Jordan x Vogue collab just launched (and already sold out), Q3 promises to be equally as successful for the label, if not better.
4. Versace, Versace (and Fendi). Everything old is new again. Thanks in no small part to celeb sightings on celebs including Hailey Baldwin and Serena Williams, Versace rose significantly on the index. Fellow heritage high-fashion label Fendi also saw a spike for the second quarter. With ’90s redux logomania reaching fever pitch this spring, new fans of the brand are shopping both vintage and current styles. (Photo by Edward Berthelot/Getty Images)
5. The “Markle Effect” is still, er, in effect. The newly-minted Duchess of Sussex continues to send brands into the retail stratosphere. Meghan Markle’s wedding dress designer, Clare Waight Keller for Givenchy, landed in the top five hottest brands for the second quarter. Coincidence? We think not. Contemporary line Goat also saw an apparent bump from the duchess: The brand’s Whitney Dress took ninth place among the hottest products list. (Photo by Jane Barlow – WPA Pool/Getty Images)
6. The O.G. it-bag is back. The Prada Nylon Belt Bag ($580) that caused a frenzy in the late ’90s has made a serious comeback (but you knew that already, right?). The label’s nylon belt bag placed fourth in the hottest womenswear products list. Also noteworthy: Belt bags were the only style of bag to make the index this quarter. The future is hands-free, it would appear.
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