Second Life

Rickie De Sole is the editor of Air Mail’s style-and-fashion publication, Dress Code. De Sole started her career as a fashion assistant at Vanity Fair. After that, she moved into public relations at Prada, where she worked from 2007 to 2010. De Sole then returned to the world of fashion media at Vogue as a market editor, working her way up to accessories director. After, De Sole went to W Magazine, eventually becoming the fashion director before transitioning back to Vogue. There, she eventually gained the title of executive fashion director of Vogue.com. De Sole later pivoted to retail at Nordstrom, ending her time there as the VP fashion director. Throughout her career, she has also served on the board of companies such as Rent the Runway and Vestiaire Collective. Today, she leads Air Mail’s style publication, Dress Code, and serves as a senior adviser at Sandbridge Capital.

This week, Hillary sits down in studio with denim expert Benjamin Talley Smith. Talley Smith  is a denim designer and consultant who works with the designers at your favorite brands—such as Khaite, Reformation, and J.Crew—to develop their denim lines. Today, he's chatting all about the new denim line he worked on for Gigi Hadid's brand, Guest in Residence, and his top trend predictions to look out for this fall. 

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Casey Lewis is the creator of the Substack newsletter After School. However, before she was writing to an audience of tens of thousands, Lewis was writing about youth trends on her blog Teen Fashionista. Later on, she started at Teen Vogue as an intern, and over the course of her time there, she worked her way up to senior digital editor. She left Teen Vogue to create Clover Letter, a daily newsletter for teen girls, which gained traction quickly and eventually got acquired by AwesomenessTV. Lewis then transitioned to a senior editor role at New York magazine, but she missed writing. So in 2021, she put in her notice and started her youth-trend Substack publication, After School. Today, she continues to write her newsletter to dedicated readers, makes accompanying content on Instagram and TikTok, and uses her expertise in youth trends to consult businesses, from early-age startups to Fortune 500 companies. 

This week, Hillary chats with designer Christian Cowan about his buzzy spring/summer 2027 collection and showing at New York Fashion Week. They discuss his biggest inspirations, the brand's evolution over the past few seasons, and the countless celebrities who can't get enough of his designs. Plus, he shares whether or not bridal is on the horizon. 

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This week, we are giving a second listen to our very special episode with Lili Reinhart. Reinhart is an actor, producer, and founder of the skincare brand Personal Day. She knew she wanted to be an actor from a young age and spent her tween and teenage years auditioning, self-taping, and begging her parents to let her finish schooling online so she could concentrate on her craft. At 19, she was cast as Betty Cooper on the hit CW show Riverdale and spent the next seven years in a nonstop filming and production cycle. During this busy period of life, she still found time to pursue outside projects, publishing a book of poetry in 2020 and founding a production company. When Riverdale ended in 2023, it allowed her a moment to pause and consider what she wanted to work on going forward. Since then, she’s been developing projects with her production company that ignore the mainstream in favor of tackling topics like mental health. She’s taken on a few acting projects, like the TV series Hal & Harper, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival last month. She also spent two years developing her skincare line, Personal Day,and has been receiving great reviews for its nonirritating formulas and effective solutions for acne-prone skin. Since this episode’s original release, Reinhart’s career has continued to thrive, and her latest project, The Love Hypothesis, premieres on September 23.

This week, Who What Wear senior fashion editor Anna LaPlaca and Associate Director Kristen Nichols headed straight from their final shows to the studio to recap all things New York Fashion Week. They dive into it all, from their most anticipated shows to designers on the rise to the trends to look out for come spring. Plus, they reveal the best color to incorporate into your spring wardrobe.
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Annie Meyers-Shyer is the creator of the social media phenomenon and book This Oak House. However, before embarking on a renovation project that would turn her into an "accidental influencer," Meyers-Shyer started her career in the fashion industry. She first worked for InStyle magazine and then Harper's Bazaar. For a period, she transitioned into the tech space as the fashion director of MySpace, but she soon returned to the traditional fashion space, working in PR at Chanel. After working at Chanel for six years, she left to focus on being a mom full-time. When her mother-in-law moved out of her Los Angeles home, Meyers-Shyer decided she wanted to take on the home and, thus, a renovation project. She documented her journey on Instagram for her friends to stay updated, and what began as a small, casual account blossomed into a community of over 200,000 followers. Today, she has taken her renovation journey and documented it in a book called This Oak House, which releases tomorrow.

This week, Hillary Kerr is joined by the prolific creative director of Coach: Stuart Vevers. Vevers has had a wide-ranging career, from his first job at Calvin Klein in the 1990s to his roles as creative director at both Mulberry and Loewe. He talks all things Coach, including the brand's legacy and its upcoming New York Fashion Week show—which is happening today! Plus, he shares how he approaches designing for the younger generations and why he thinks the Tabby and Brooklyn bags have gained cult followings. 

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Jess Rona is a content creator, the founder of Jess Rona Grooming Salon, and the founder of the new dogcare brand Shmoop. Before she had her own dog-grooming empire, Rona dreamed of becoming an actress. At 18, while pursuing her acting dreams, she got a job as a dog bather at PetSmart in Los Angeles. While working this job, she slowly began to learn how to groom as well. She took a break from dog grooming to move to New York City and start doing improv at the Upright Citizens Brigade. She ultimately returned to Los Angeles and began dog grooming once again, even participating in grooming competitions. Eventually, she opened her own grooming business out of her garage, transitioning into being her own boss. Then, her slow-motion dog-grooming videos on social media began to go viral, which helped her business take off. She moved her grooming salon to a brick-and-mortar location in Larchmont Village, and now, Rona is about to launch Shmoop, "a beauty brand for every dog."

Marissa Schwartz is the costume designer behind the hit new Amazon Prime Video series Sterling Point. The show has gained acclaim for its fresh perspective on the YA genre and its commitment to representing its Gen Z characters authentically in the dialogue, the acting, and, of course, the outfits. In this episode, Schwartz shares how she approached dressing each of the characters and which brands she leaned on—from Chanel to Bode to Still Here—to help tell the story.

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