Tanner Fletcher has been one of New York City's hottest emerging designer brands for the past few seasons, with designers Tanner Richie and Fletcher Kasell making waves for the way they bring a modern touch to vintage aesthetics through genderless designs. I'm here.
CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund finalists and last year's CFDA Emerging Designer of the Year nominees, the designers have already become brand icons and favorites of many celebrities. creating style. Take, for example, Tanner's Fletcher's Bow suit, which the designer has updated season after season and has been worn by the likes of Bad His Bunny and Tom His Daily.
For their bowsuits and other pieces, Ritchie and Cassell draw inspiration from interior design, which has been core to their design process and brand overall since launching Tanner Fletcher at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Masu.
“When we design a collection, it starts right there: in our own homes and other interiors,” Cassel said. “We always find ourselves bringing little things into the house to add to our interior collection. We always buy at the flea market in Chelsea or find something in the city and add it to our collection. Every time we're ready to design a collection, we have like 100 new things in our apartment and we go around and see what interests us and what we're drawn to, and that's how we create the collection. It really helps build a foundation.”
Ritchie and Kasel started their brand in 2020 by handcrafting home decor, pillows, tote bags, and small accessories that they sell to local Brooklyn boutiques. The designer met her as roommates at the University of Minnesota and transferred to her LIM College together. Small successes as opportunities to dig deeper into design. Eventually, they ventured into the apparel business and launched their first official ready-to-wear collection for the Spring 2022 season.
Their roots in interior design remained a central focus as they expanded into apparel. The designer draws inspiration for his collections from a myriad of design aesthetics, from the Victorian era to mid-century Hollywood to his 1930s to his 40s.
Inside Tanner Fletcher's studio.
Evelyn Freya/WWD
“We’re bouncing all over the place,” Cassel said. “I always say we pick and choose things from all eras, but we try to put our filter on and use the best things that people have completely forgotten about and that aren't currently on the market. So how do we take that back? This is something really amazing and shouldn't be ignored, because in every era there are things that are really scary. I think that's the beauty of this brand, that it doesn't match the times.”
This inspiration is reflected in Tanner Fletcher's ready-to-wear in many ways, not only through color and fabric, but also through design details such as ruffles, ribbons, and other embellishments. For example, the brand's ubiquitous ribbons are inspired by objects such as curtain pulls and vintage furniture, Cassel explained. He also highlighted a fringe suit, one of the brand's earliest collections, which was inspired by lampshades.
From Tanner Fletcher's Fall 2024 collection, interior design inspiration came from several black structured blazers embellished with vintage pins found at thrift stores and the continued use of ribbons and ruffles.
Cassell said that each season, as she and Ritchie scour vintage stores for materials and inspiration, they pick up different home decor items to use in photo shoots.
This has led the designers to amass a large collection of vintage pieces and launch a home decor collection on their website to sell a variety of candle holders, plates, lamps, needle points, and other small trinkets. I decided to. Cassel said the collection was an immediate hit with customers.
Inside Tanner Fletcher's studio.
Evelyn Freya/WWD
“It's fun to see customers not only buy a shirt, but also buy a candle holder with it,” he said. “That's exactly how we wanted our customers to behave, so it's fun to actually see them behave and act the way we imagined them.”
Tanner Fletcher has plans to expand into the home decor category this year. The designers have added to their website an assortment of small trinkets found during a recent trip to Paris, and are considering adding larger pieces such as side chairs and tables to the assortment as well. .
Larger items can only be picked up by customers in the New York City area. Mr Cassel explained that the brand had primarily focused its home decor category on small pieces for shipping reasons, but the new studio in Chelsea now allows it to offer larger pieces as well.
“The main similarity is taste,” Cassel said of the similarities between fashion and home decor. “We always say that wardrobe and home are more connected than you think, but I think it really has to do with the person. For obvious reasons, they are It's more connected. We look around our house and let that inspire our outfits. I feel like we're not the only ones doing that.”
As the brand continues to grow and expand, Ritchie and Cassel are committed to staying true to their design philosophy and continuing to show the connection between fashion and interior design, even though the designers have just released their first bridal collection. I'm here.
“Homewares and wardrobe may not be separate categories,” says Cassel. “Sometimes they can be thought of as complete opposites, but I think it's better if they're offered within the same category. It's more like shopping for aesthetics.”
